Master of the House
by PierceTheVeils
Summary: When Commodore Karyn Faro takes a week of shore leave, she brings more home from her life on the Chimaera than anticipated. Tharo. Set shortly after Thrawn: Alliances by Timothy Zahn.
1. The Arrival

Master of the House

Chapter One: The Arrival

Commodore Karyn Faro had put shore leave off for far too long. She had excuses, yes, but that didn't make the fact any less true. First it was the new commanding officer, then came the Battle of Batonn, then the rebel campaign entered full swing, with it came the Battle of Atollon, followed by her promotion, and then there was that business in the Unknown Regions with Lord Vader… eventually, Karyn had to admit no time was an ideal one to take a week off. She just had to seize the opportunity and weather any damages to her career that came with.

At least Grand Admiral Thrawn had taken it in stride. One aside about how Lord Vader had 'exhausted' all his best officers_, _and her request was granted without issue. Karyn scheduled passage on the first transport she could find with her home world of Kohmbra among its destinations and was off the _Chimaera_ in less than a standard day.

Which was why it was such a shock to her when the grand admiral joined her on the same transport. What was he doing here? Karyn's eyes widened when she saw him, gaze lingering far longer than was polite.

Lucky for her, Thrawn mistook her reason for staring. He nodded as she took a seat in the row behind him. "Commodore."

"Grand Admiral, sir. What… brings you here?"

"I have an audience with High Command on Coruscant. This transport shall dock there after a brief stop on another Core world. Kohmbra, if I recall."

"Yes, sir. That is where I am headed." What were the odds of this happening? Karyn could only assume they were insanely small. And wasn't Thrawn just on Coruscant when he debriefed with the Emperor? High Command didn't feel like holding meetings a week earlier?

Thrawn glanced behind him as she was seated, offering the barest of smiles. "I see. A coincidence, then."

Karyn didn't ask him to elaborate on that. She didn't need to. Instead, she did her best to ignore him. Focus on the fact that she was on leave and therefore had no reason to interact with Thrawn. Today marked her first time speaking to him outside her professional capacity. It wasn't something of which she ought to make a habit.

Still, her eyes wandered to the back of his head more often than she cared to admit, especially after the transport entered hyperspace. She thought about engaging him further, but her senses caught up to her before that could happen. Determined not to linger on her commander's presence all flight, Karyn shifted her thoughts to the message that inspired her to take leave now, while she still had a chance.

It was Hana. Karyn hadn't gotten off shift early enough to receive the call, so a holo message was all her little sister had left for her. _"Karyn, finally! I tried calling you days ago, but you must have been super far out in space, because I couldn't get a signal last time. Anyway, I know you ignored me when I invited you to celebrate my acceptance to university, my graduation, our father's recognition in the Hall of Planetary Heroes, my engagement, our mother's recovery from that _horrible_ case of cancer… look, I get it. You're busy. But… I'm getting married next week to the love of my life. It would mean sooooooooo much to me if you came for the ceremony. All our family's gonna be there, and it wouldn't be the same without you. Don't you wanna meet your future brother-in-law?"_

_Sigh. "I won't make this message long. I'm sure you have important stuff to get back to. I… understand if you don't want to take time off right now. Hope you're well. Love, Hana."_

It didn't matter that Hana had been an adult for a few years now. When Karyn looked at her sister's face, she would always be reminded of a kid. Hana's face had a round softness Karyn's had long since lost. Coupled with her wide eyes, pouty lips, and flowing locks of hair, Hana seemed to look the same age in every holo message while Karyn alone aged on.

Perhaps those perceptions would change when they saw each other in person again. Karyn had sent advance notice of her plans along to her mother in the form of a request. Pick her up from the spaceport and bring her home as a special wedding gift to the bride. It was the least Karyn could do after missing out on so much.

Who could Hana have chosen to marry? She'd never mentioned anyone to Karyn. The last time Hana and Karyn were in regular contact, Hana was forbidden from dating by their mother. That hadn't stopped Hana from seeking boys out in secret, but none of those relationships had lasted to Karyn's knowledge.

Would Karyn like the person her sister was bringing into the family? Did it matter if she didn't? All sorts of questions swirled around in Karyn's head, none of which she had the answer to. It was disconcerting, having all this free time with just her own thoughts. Especially when work on the _Chimaera_ was as constantly hectic as it had been lately.

At least she didn't have long to wait. For all the physical distance between Outer Rim planets and the Inner Core, the transport had taken the widest and most popular hyperspace lane connecting the two. A direct flight from the _Chimaera _(docked above Lothal) to Kohmbra only took several hours. Karyn watched through the window, waiting for the familiar sight of blue streaks to melt away. She allowed herself a smile when the sprawling capital city of her home planet came into view.

Karyn was out of her seat as soon as the ship landed. Her higher rank had scored her a seat on the front of the ship. It also granted her a quick exit off the flight and speedy passage through customs. The sun, though setting, hadn't yet departed from the horizon when Karyn found her mother in the arrival zone.

She approached her mother with a purpose, careful not to startle her. "Mother?"

Gasp. "Karyn? Oh, it _is _you!" Hayleen Faro threw her hands around her daughter, straining to reach Karyn's cheek for a kiss. Her embrace was tight, but wavering. Her hair, once a vivid chesnut brown, remained short and dominated by dull gray streaks, giving her the look of someone far older than fifty-two. Hayleen's fight with disease had not been as sound a victory as her holo messages had claimed. Karyn's heart sunk with the realization.

As Hayleen pulled away, Karyn did her best to hide her thoughts. "You look wonderful, Karyn. So nice to see you in full size! And your new rank badge! Every time I see you, it gets even bigger. What are you, now? A commander?"

"Commodore."

"That's right. Congratulations, sweetie! You deserve it." Another embrace.

"Thank you, Mother. How are you? How is Hana?" Karyn wanted to hear about everything going on at home. She had to strain her ears to hear over the newest spaceport announcements.

"Oh, I'm fine. Been healthy for a good half year, now. I can do everything I used to do around the house again. Hana is exactly how you'd expect her to be. Girl's three days away from the biggest event of her life. She's gonna be so happy to see you here, you know. She has two plans for her wedding ceremony: one with you in the wedding party and one without. I made sure she had that second one, just in case you couldn't make it."

Karyn laughed, then stopped herself. After everything she'd been through, hearing someone call a wedding the biggest day of one's life was… quaint. But it made Hana happy, and that was all that mattered. "You didn't tell her I was coming, did you?"

Hayleen returned her grin. "Not a word. She thinks I'm out picking new wine glasses."

"Good. I want to surprise her. I…" Karyn's next thought drifted right out of her head when she noticed something strange at the gate. A tall blue man stood there, wrapped in a heated discussion with a travel officer. Two stormtroopers flanked his sides, obscuring his uniform from view. All Karyn could catch was a flash of white. "Excuse me for a minute, Mother."

"Hm?" Hayleen followed after her. "What is it?"

_It's not my problem. I'm on leave. I shouldn't ask. It's not my-_

"Grand Admiral, sir? I'm surprised to see you off the transport. Isn't you destination elsewhere?" Karyn asked from a respectful distance away. She kept her question vague to avoid giving information to eavesdroppers.

Red eyes met hers. At first they were alight with frustration. Their fire dulled considerably upon Thrawn's recognition of her. "This doesn't concern you, Commodore. Do not delay your vacation activities on my account."

The travel officer scowled at the interruption. "I'm sorry, Grand Admiral, sir. Our transport ships are hardy, but even they can't fly through the solar storm currently occurring in local space. Imperial safety regulation does not permit it. I share your frustration that such conditions were not forecast, but we cannot authorize any further liftoffs in current conditions. If you agree to wait for the storm to calm to an acceptable degree, we will connect you with first class seats on the next available transport of your choice, free of all charges. Once again, we are sorry for the inconvenience."

Hayleen leaned forward, eyes squinted. "A solar storm? Was that on the forecast?"

"Did you not hear the recent announcement? Excessive solar activity from this system's star was just detected on radar. The possibility of coronal mass ejections is high. All outbound flights have been cancelled until further notice. That is final." The travel officer dared give Thrawn a tight grin. "Good day, sir."

The fire from before was back. She tried to soothe her commander about the situation. "I'm so sorry, sir. Your meeting was not tonight, was it?"

"No. I was only asked to meet with Grand Moff Tarkin tonight. He spoke of running routine errands with me at his side. Meetings with lower officials, as he described it."

That sounded important. "Did he _call_ them 'errands', sir?"

"That is all they appear to be, Commodore. No matter now," the grand admiral turned to Hayleen, "Madame Faro, I presume?"

"Oh, yessir." Hayleen performed a mangled action halfway between a salute and a curtsy. Karyn did her best not to react. "My daughter speaks highly of you, sir."

Thrawn's lips twitched up for a split second. For him, that was a full-sized grin. "She did not leave her own accomplishments out of her reports back home, I trust. Let me personally assure you of their grandness and diversity in nature."

Karyn felt the blood rush into her cheeks. "Thank you, Grand Admiral sir. Since you are moored to Kohmbra for a night, I assume you will be seeking temporary lodging?"

"Indeed. I will find what Imperial-approved location is the closest to this spaceport and await better news in the morning." And with that statement, Thrawn was done talking. "Good leave to you, Commodore. A pleasure, Madame Faro."

"Well, hold on now. Sir, you don't have to spend a bunch of credits on a hotel. My house is a mere ten kilometers away from this spaceport. You can stay with us until space travel is safe again."

Karyn froze in her tracks. This was not what she'd intended when she came over to speak with Thrawn. She couldn't give him the impression he wasn't wanted without causing offense, but the image of Thrawn in her house analyzing her family's possessions was quickly approaching the leaderboard of her most dreaded nightmares. She had to avert this crisis. "Mother, I know you want to be generous, but I doubt the Grand Admiral would be interested in what we have to offer. It's... rather modest, especially compared to where he would be tonight, had a solar storm not erupted."

"I'm sure it is, but wasn't it you, sweetie, who told me the Empire doesn't reimburse its officers for unscheduled lodging payments? Places by the spaceport can be awfully expensive. This is the nice part of the city, after all."

"Only on non-combat missions, but yes. It's to prevent officers from sending vacation resort bills to the Imperial treasury."

"Well, I don't have a problem with housing an extra guest for a night or two. You, sir, are bound to be on your way before the wedding. I'm certain of it."

Thrawn raised an eyebrow. "A wedding, Commodore?"

"My sister's." Karyn was quick to clarify. _Not mine._

"I see. I certainly wouldn't want to intrude on such an important event for your family. Thank you for your kindness, Madame Faro, but it is far from my desire to impose on your hospitality."

Hayleen Faro had every opportunity to step down at this point. She did not take the option. "Nonsense, sir. It wouldn't be an imposition at all! Us Kohmbrans take pride in our hospitality. You two don't have any baggage to claim, do you?"

Now Karyn could remember why she didn't argue with her mother. Didn't matter how many sound points one presented if the woman ignored them all. How could she have forgotten? "No, Mother."

"Grand Admiral, sir?"

Thrawn still hadn't budged. But he did wave his guard away. The pair of troopers were hesitant to leave him, but they did concede. "If it is your custom to welcome guests such as myself into your home, I see nothing to gain in affronting it. I will accept your gracious offer, Madame Faro. I travel with few possessions and have nothing to retrieve. Will I be secure in your residence?"

"Certainly, sir! If my house is safe enough for a commodore and future admiral, it can accommodate a current admiral as well."

"Grand admiral," Karyn corrected. Thrawn didn't seem to mind, for his part.

"Well, follow me you two! I'll drive us out on my speeder."

_And so the nightmare begins._ This was why Karyn never should have approached her commander in the spaceport. Lesson learned for the next time she took shore leave. Whenever that was.

* * *

**A/N's: Special shout out to coffeeberry (on AO3) who gave me the final push I needed to write this fic. I've been considering Tharo as a ship for some time, but her fics are what fully brought me on board. Read them if you haven't yet. They may be in Polish, but that's what Google Translate is for.**

**Thanks for reading, don't forget to leave your thoughts below, and I'll see you on the far side!**


	2. The Homestead

Master of the House

Chapter Two: The Homestead

Despite Hayleen's best attempts, the drive from the spaceport passed largely in silence. There was little Karyn or Thrawn could say about recent missions due to their classified nature, Thrawn was vague as always about his past, and Karyn had no interest in telling intimate childhood stories to her commander. The true surrender came when Hayleen tuned into the local holonews broadcast. Unfortunately, all the reporter wanted to discuss was a recent burglary at the Kohmbran historical archives. The solar storm wasn't even mentioned. Hayleen shut it off after a minute.

"And we are here! Watch your head on the way out, the porch awning hangs a bit low around the edges." Karyn was out of the speeder first. She walked over to assist her mother in getting up from her seat.

Would it have been more polite to help Thrawn out of the speeder? He didn't need the assistance, but it may still be a lapse in manners to ignore him. Her mother's glare indicated as much.

When Hayleen and Karyn reached the door, Hayleen stopped to pull out her code cylinder for the house. "Well sweetie, your sister is on the other side of that door. How do you want to announce yourself?"

"Let her know you're home first. I want to make sure she's listening when I call."

"Your sister does not know you plan to attend her wedding?" Thrawn asked from behind the two women.

"She invited me to her wedding, sir. I just didn't tell her if I was coming yet."

Hayleen inserted her cylinder into the door, which slid open immediately. Hayleen stepped in first, dropping her cylinder into a hanging basket off to the side. The motion caused the foyer light to turn on, revealing a sparse hallway with two family pictures displayed on each side. One of her father smiling proudly in uniform, and one of him kneeling beside his daughters with Hayleen off to the right.

Just seeing him made Karyn swallow. Those pictures had not been in the foyer on her last visit. She turned away when she noticed Thrawn staring at them too.

"Hana! I'm back." Hayleen called out from her place by the doorway opposite of the garage. "Will you come here for a minute?"

A muffled response came from some distant corner of the house. "What is it, Mom? You get the glasses I like?"

Karyn cleared her throat and spoke clearly. "Not exactly."

For a split second, the house was dead silent. Then came the scream.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" The sound was not unlike that of targeted missile. Karyn could follow Hana's exact strike path based on the direction of the noise. Both Hayleen and Thrawn took several precautionary steps away from the area of impact: that is, Karyn herself.

Even braced for it, the hug nearly knocked Karyn over. Hana rammed into her sister at full running speed, arms wrapping around Karyn's torso in a full vicegrip. Face planted in the crook of Karyn's neck, Hana shook her sister back and forth several times before letting her breathe. When she stepped away, she screamed again. "Eeeeeeeeeee! Karyn, you came! I can't believe you actually came home for me."

"I was able to take a week of leave, so I did. Is this a decent wedding gift?"

"It's great! I'm so happy you're home. This is gonna be my best wedding ever!" Hana paused, adjusting the cord on her bathrobe without looking down. "My only one, I hope."

"Well darling, Will is a wonderful man. I'm sure he'll be a good husband for many years to come." Hayleen lay a hand on each daughter's shoulder. "I'm sure you girls have a lot to catch up on. I intend to lead our guest to his quarters and go to bed right after. You two have the house to yourselves, but please be mindful. Hana, did you remember to activate the security droids?"

"No, I… wait." Hana noticed Thrawn's presence for the first time. He'd been staring at the portrait of her father. "I'm sorry, who are you?" She gasped. "Karyn, did you bring a date?"

"No," Karyn was quick to deny it. Perhaps too quick. "Hana, this is Grand Admiral Thrawn. My boss."

"Oh. Why is your boss here?"

"My flight to Coruscant laid over on this planet. While here, it was cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances," Thrawn explained, only then turning to face Hana. His eyes briefly widened as he took her in, making Karyn squirm. "Pleasure to meet you, Miss Faro. Your… attire. It has come loose." He gestured toward his own chest to demonstrate.

Hana looked down. One of her breasts was exposed. "Eep! Sorry about that." She pulled her robe up, then blushed a rosy pink. "I… wasn't expecting guests tonight."

"Nor did you have any reason to expect them. Think nothing of it, Miss Faro."

So that was all it was… wait. That was still really embarrassing. And Hana agreed. "I'm gonna go activate some droids. See you in the living room, Karyn." Only as she was leaving did Karyn realize Hana was also barefoot. Had she been naked when they arrived?

Hayleen clapped her hands together, determined to move past this unfortunate incident. "Yes, well. Sir, I hope you will find the guestroom up to your standards. It's through this doorway on the left and across the hall from both a refresher and the living room. I can find you something to sleep in if you give me a moment. There are some grooming and washing supplies in the refresher under the sink, but do tell me if you need anything else." Hayleen continued her lecture as she and Thrawn left for the guest room, leaving Karyn alone in the foyer. She exited through the doorway at the end of the hall, avoiding her father's gaze as she did so.

This path led directly into the living room. Karyn flopped unceremoniously down onto the couch. She briefly considered going to the kitchen and pouring herself a drink, but all the good alcohol was probably for the wedding. Hana would throw a fit if one of the bottles were found open on the day of the ceremony.

Karyn stared up at the ceiling for an indeterminate amount of time. She could still hear her mother's voice from this room, but didn't strain herself to make out any of the words.

This was nice. For all the stress and confusion about bringing Thrawn into her childhood home, it was good to be on Kohmbra again. Karyn had succeeded in her mission of surprising Hana, so now all she had to do was make sure her sister had a great wedding and got the most out of Karyn's time here.

She turned as she heard a noise from the far side of the room. Hana approached slowly this time, not speaking until she'd taken a seat next to Karyn. She spoke without preamble, "I'm sorry I flashed your boss."

"It's okay. I don't think he cares."

"I'm also sorry I wrinkled your uniform so much."

Karyn looked down. Honestly, she hadn't noticed that one. "I'll get the creases out before I go back to work. Don't worry about it."

Hana took that as permission to lay her head on Karyn's chest. She had to shift a few times to avoid the rank badge. "I just got so excited when I heard your voice. I thought I'd imagined it at first. I have a plan for my wedding with you in it, you know. There's still time to switch over."

"Mom mentioned that. What do you want me to do in your wedding ceremony?"

"Lead me down the aisle. Like Dad would have if he were here."

The request sent a pang through Karyn's heart. Pain muted by time was still pain, however dull. "I can do that. Anything else?"

"Meet Will and his family when they come over tomorrow. Write and give a speech at our reception. Wear the dress I picked out for you."

Hana had picked out a dress for her? Even though she hadn't known Karyn was coming? That… sounded like Hana. "Will is your betrothed, right? Tell me about him."

"Okay!" Hana sat up straight, hair swishing in her sister's face. "Will is amazing. He is soooooo smart, really sweet, he always listens to me and teaches me new things about the galaxy. He's got these really thick glasses that give him a 'bookish, but still hot' look. His hair is forever messy and I always have to fix it for him, but it's so smooth when I run my hands through… it feels really good, okay? Sometimes when he stays up working all night he has stubble on his face the next day, and it's like a warm sandy rock when I touch it. He always has funny history stories to tell me when I don't understand why things are like they are today. He answers all my questions and never makes me feel bad for asking them. He's super funny but thinks all his jokes suck, so he gets bashful whenever I laugh. And one time-"

Yeah, none of these details was helpful. "That's really nice Hana, but… what is Will's full name? Where does he work? Where is he from? How did the two of you meet?"

"Oh." Hana pouted. "I forgot you're like this. His name is William Sklar, he's a planetary history professor at the local university, he was born in the city, the same as us, and we met when he was a teaching assistant in my university history class. I wasn't doing super well, so he agreed to tutor me outside of class. We fell in love in those sessions, and when the semester was over, he asked me out for caf. We've been together ever since."

"He was your teaching assistant? How old is he?"

"Twenty-eight, now." Hana shrugged. "It's only a five year difference. That's not a big deal."

It really wasn't. Karyn looked into Hana's pleading eyes and sighed. "I'll meet him tomorrow. I'm sure he's every bit as good as you say he is."

"I know he is! You'll love him, Karyn. Just like Mom does."

"Perhaps." Karyn's mind wandered back into the foyer. "When did you two move those pictures of Dad into the foyer? They used to be in Mom's room, right?"

"Oh, Mom did that a few months ago. This was after Will helped us get Dad recognized in the Hall of Planetary Heroes. It was something special for Dad's birthday, and it went really well. The governor even mentioned Dad in his sixteenth Empire Day speech." Hana's face lit up with the memory. "Oh wait! He mentioned you too! I forgot about that."

"The governor of Kohmbra knows my name? Why?" It was rare any politician was familiar with Karyn. Not that that was always a bad thing.

"For his speech!" Hana puffed up her chest and gave her voice an officious tone. "'Kane Faro's sacrifice to stop the criminal Jedi Coup has been ignored by Kohmbra for too long, but those in his family never forgot about his dedication to service. Today, Faro's legacy lives on in his eldest daughter Karyn, a commodore in the Seventh Fleet of the Imperial Navy.' Something like… yeah, I think that was it. I sent you a holo of the speech. Don't you remember?" Hana searched Karyn's face, then slumped. "Don't tell me: you didn't even open it."

Last Empire Day, huh? Let's see. What had Karyn been doing at that time? Oh, right. "I'm sorry, Hana. I don't know if I received that one."

Loud sighs. "I'm used to it by now. Anyway, it was a nice night. Will helped set up the exhibit in the historical archives and everything. Which is why it sucks so much that the place was robbed a week ago!"

There'd been something on the holonews about that. Karyn had been curious before, but now she was invested. "That's not good. Who would steal historical documents? Most of them aren't that valuable."

"It must be rebels!" Hana declared, then sniffed. "Everything stolen was from the Clone Wars or the couple years after. One… one of the datafiles taken was Dad's. All the original reports about the night he died are in the hands of some thief."

Karyn swallowed. She felt a hard pit of anger travel down her throat until it landed firmly in her stomach. "Where is the Hall of Historical Archives, again? Downtown?"

"You want to go?" Hana asked. When Karyn nodded, she squealed with glee. "Oh, I'm so glad. I've been wanting to go too, but the stormtroopers won't let me past, and wedding planning takes forever! You're a big deal in the Imperial military. If we went there the day after the wedding, I bet they would let you investigate. I just wasn't sure if you'd want to do work on your shore leave."

"I can make an exception for this." Kane Faro had been his daughter's hero while she was growing up. His work in the planetary defense force had inspired Karyn to apply for the (then) Republic's military academy. No one went after her father's legacy and got away with it.

"Yay! I know you can do it, Karyn. I just figured your grand admiral had you worked out for the week."

Karyn shrugged. "Par for the course on the Chimaera. That ship always has important work to do in the galaxy."

Hana bit her lip, smile putting dimples on her cheeks. "Well, if it's any consolation, I can see why you wouldn't want to take leave. If I had a boss that hot, I wouldn't wanna take my eyes off him."

"Hana, no. That is not why I haven't taken leave in the recent past."

"But you agree he's hot. Interesting." Hana looked like one of those annoying Lothcats when they caught a bird in their teeth. "He seems intense to me, but I bet you can handle it."

Karyn resisted the urge to facepalm. "Can you please not talk about the grand admiral in that way? I will not have this conversation with you."

"What? I'm marrying someone else! You don't have to worry about me. I bet you two look super sexy together."

Did Karyn have to use her commander voice? "We are not talking about this."

"Why not? Is it because he isn't human? I mean, I know that's illegal here, but some systems are okay with it. Mom and I won't rat you out if you want to enjoy your mutual work break. I think Mom is actually pulling for the two of you. Something about how you act in holomessages."

If that was why Hayleen had invited Thrawn home, she and Karyn were going to have a talk. A long, stern, intense talk. "Hana, Grand Admiral Thrawn is my boss. It is against Imperial regulation for a commander to have intimate relations with his subordinates. That regulation is in effect everywhere in the galaxy. Violation of that statute is grounds for a court martial."

"Court martial, huh? Didn't you tell me the admiral has survived several of those already? Or was that mom who mentioned it?"

"For unconventional military strategy, yes. He has defeated every charge raised against him. But this would be something different entirely." Karyn had put over a decade of labor into achieving her position in the Imperial Navy. She wasn't about to let an indiscreet affair ruin it all.

Hana huffed, resting her head on a fist. "Fine. I guess it is better for you to be promoted again first. Trust me when I say the wait is worth it, though."

"Noted." There was no point in arguing anymore. Karyn stood up, checking the time as she did so. "I'm off to bed. What time does your betrothed get over here tomorrow?"

"Probably, like, mid-morning. Not too early. You can sleep in if you want."

Karyn doubted she'd even be able to. Her body followed such a strict internal clock that she hadn't needed an alarm in years for regular shifts. "Thanks, Hana. We'll talk more later."

"Sure thing. Night, Karyn!" Hana gave her sister one last hug before letting her go. "I love you."

"Love you too, Hana."

As Karyn walked her way back to her childhood room, she passed the door to the guest room. The light was still on inside. Not only that, but Karyn could still detect Hana's humming from this short of a distance.

Thrawn hadn't… heard them, had he?

* * *

**A/N's: Wasn't expecting to get an update out so quickly, but here y'all go. Don't expect them all this fast. Thanks for tuning in, don't forget to leave a review, and I'll see you on the far side!**


	3. The In-Laws

Master of the House

Chapter Three: The In-Laws

Soft sunlight poured through the window, framing Karyn's face like a halo. She blinked a few times before stirring, stretching so her whole body would wake up at once. Only when she sat up did she remember why she wasn't on the Chimaera anymore.

Karyn stumbled out of her childhood bedroom, through the living room, and into the kitchen. She'd forgotten to expect Thrawn in her groggy morning state, and straightened instantly into attention upon noticing him. _Wait, aren't I at… yeah, I'm home. But so is he. He's in my house, too. Okay._

"At ease, Commodore. You're on leave," Thrawn reminded her. "Where does your household store its caf?"

"I'll get it, sir." Karyn set Thrawn's cup to brew first, then made her own. One sip, and he was already scrunching his nose. "Is something wrong, sir?"

"Commodore, why is this caf sweet?"

"My mother buys the sweetened kind when she shops. She dislikes bitter things." It'd all started when Karyn was thirteen. She'd wanted to drink caf like a grown up, so her father let her sample out of his cup. Karyn had taken just one sip before she spit it out in the sink. Kane Faro had laughed, telling her to add milk and sugar next time. It wasn't enough. Karyn could still taste the bitterness underneath.

After a few tries, Hayleen went out, found a variant of caf modified to be sweet, and bought it for her daughter. Karyn had loved that caf until she'd left for the academy and had to learn how to handle bitterness. Hayleen had tried to switch back to regular caf after Karyn left, but the taste reminded her too much of Kane. And so sweet caf became a staple in the Faro household.

Karyn took a long drink when her cup was ready. More than anything, this taste was what brought her home. Which was why she wasn't paying full attention when Thrawn asked his next question.

"Is that why all the products in the guest refresher smell like a specific species of flower?"

Karyn was fortunate to have a mug obscuring her face when he asked that. He didn't see or hear her snort this way. She waited to compose herself before answering. "That is likely Hana's doing. I think the most common houseguests here are still her friends, so they probably share her scent preferences."

"I see." Thrawn took another sip of his caf, still visibly reacting to the taste. "I do not share your sister's preferences."

Figures. "I will see if there are any unscented products in the house. Have you had a chance to check flight statuses at the spaceport?"

"I have not. Where may I do so?"

Surely there were other ways, but Karyn thought of this method first. She led him into a corner of the living room and tuned into the local holonews. The announcers were in the middle of their hourly traffic and weather updates. "...but no sign of the rain we were promised, just your morning mists covering the industrial sector. All you early commuters better have your speeder's lights on on your drive in, or we could have some real accidents on our hands. Beyond our planet's atmosphere, allow me to issue an apology to all our interplanetary travelers. The surprise solar storm continues, and CME's have been confirmed. No Carrington Events expected, but all outbound spaceflights remain grounded and all arriving flights have been diverted to the neighboring system. Now for the speeder traffic report with your friend, Kenneth-"

Karyn cut the feed. "Sorry, sir."

A long, slow sip. "You bear no blame for the current weather, Commodore. An apology is not necessary."

"When is your meeting with High Command?"

"It begins this evening. Coruscant standard time."

Thrawn turned away from Karyn. As he walked back to the kitchen, Karyn noticed a tuft of hair sticking up on the back of his head. Her hand reached out to fix it before common sense aborted the mission. He was gone before she could make contact.

Why would she think that was a good idea? Karyn hadn't been home a day, and Hana's naive sentiments were already wearing off on her. Ridiculous.

Karyn returned to the kitchen when she finished her caf. She put her cup under the sink and rinsed it out. Following her lead, Thrawn stood beside her to do the same. She tried to take his cup out of his hands. "I can get that."

"No need, Commodore. As you're on leave, I don't expect you to defer to me as you normally would."

"That isn't my reason. You're a guest in my house, sir. Hosts are responsible for the ease and comfort of their guests." This time, Karyn succeeded in taking the cup from Thrawn. It was already mostly clean by that point. "Was the guest bedroom to your liking?"

"It was sufficient." Was that a compliment or an insult? From Thrawn, it could go either way. "May I ask you a personal question, Commodore?"

Karyn's mind flashed back through the events of last night. There was a wide array of matters on which Thrawn ask her. Each one was a different flavor of embarrassing. She wasn't sure she wanted to hear what was coming next. "What is it, sir?"

"The images of your father in the entryway. You were not pleased to see them last night. I recall you once told me that your father perished in combat when you were sixteen years old. Does his image unsettle you even in present day?"

That was not what Karyn was expecting him to ask. None of her mentally prepared answers were sufficient in answering it. "Not… not quite, sir. I was merely surprised to see the portrait in its current location. On all my other trips home, my mother had kept those images in the master bedroom."

"Do you not approve of the change?"

"It isn't a matter of my approval, sir. The house belongs to my mother, and I spend almost no time here as it is. There's little reason for my mother and sister to consider my perspective when they make redecorating decisions."

"Then you do not approve. The answer to my initial question is an affirmative."

Dammit. First Hana, and now Thrawn. Was Karyn always this easy to read? Just because she refused to lie to them didn't mean she wanted these people to know the truth about all things.

Lucky for Karyn, Hayleen came into the kitchen before Thrawn could ask any other questions. "Oh, you two don't have to be up so early! Enjoy your morning in, relax a bit. Can I interest you in any caf?"

"We already drank some, Mother." Karyn waved an empty cup to show her.

"Okay, okay. I'll just make my own the-" Hayleen's slippers squeaked on the tile as she stopped in her tracks. "Sir… you didn't sleep in that uniform, did you? Did Will's nightclothes not fit you after all?"

"They fit fine, Madame Faro. I am simply not in the habit of remaining in sleepwear when awake. That is not the purpose of such attire."

Karyn was suddenly very conscious of the fact she was still in an old t-shirt and sweatpants. Thrawn was going to see her in civilian clothes today anyway, but did this have to be his first encounter with her out of uniform? Was now a bad time to duck out and get dressed?

"I… see. Well, can I get you anything to eat? I'm about to start cooking brunch for our future in-laws, but I can whip something up real quick if you're hungry now."

"I can wait. With the weather conditions as they are, I will be waiting a while. Thank you, Madame Faro. You may begin work on your… brunch."

"It's a hybrid meal with elements of breakfast and lunch present," Karyn explained for Thrawn's benefit, then turned to her mother. "When should everyone arrive? Hana wasn't specific."

"Half past ten, sweetie. Oh, and since you're up, I'm going to need your help in the kitchen. We're cooking for eig- no, nine, and I'm not as light on my feet as I used to be. You remember how to cook, right?"

No, as it turned out. Karyn didn't remember how to make anything more complex than a cup of caf, much to her mother's chagrin. Hayleen criticized her daughter for her use of dry measuring cups on liquid ingredients and liquid measuring bowls for dry, her attempts to whisk when she was supposed to beat, and (apparently) worst of all, her pouring of spices straight into the mixture instead of first into her hand. "Honestly, sweetie. How can you command a whole Star Destroyer of soldiers when you have no care for _consistency_," she stirred batter in Karyn's face, "and detail?"

Having learned his lesson earlier, Thrawn remained staunchly outside the kitchen for this entire process. This meant he was the first to greet Hana when she decided to grace the household with her presence… in a camisole and booty shorts. She was thoroughly confused as to why Thrawn was staring at her.

"Morning, admiral! How did you… what's wrong? I'm dece-" she looked down to check, "yeah! I'm decent this time."

"Are you now?"

"...Yeah. I am." A moment of silence as they stared at each other, Hana making faces throughout. It ended when Hana shrugged and strolled into the kitchen anyway. "Something smells good."

Hayleen snorted. "Nothing Karyn is making."

"Mom, be nice. Karyn's too busy keeping the galaxy safe to cook real food. I bet someone does that for her on the Chim… Chimpan-"

"_Chimaera_."

"That place! I send messages there all the time. I should know that. Here," Hana took Karyn's place on the cutting board, "I can do the rest. Go get ready. Oh, and I talked to Will this morning. He knows you're here and about our plans for after the wedding."

"Thanks, Hana." Karyn wasn't about to argue. She left the kitchen and fully intended to return to her room when Thrawn motioned for her to come closer. "Yes, sir?"

He spoke to her in low tones. "This brunch event that is occurring soon. Who all does it involve?"

"The four of us, Hana's betrothed, and his immediate family. Parents and… two siblings, if I had to guess from Mother's numbers." Karyn paused, trying to deduce why Thrawn would ask her this. "You are welcome at the meal, sir."

Thrawn's expression did not change. "What do you know of your future brother-in-law and his family?"

"Hana told me some information about her betrothed last night. She did not mention anything about his relatives."

"I see." Thrawn glanced at Hana and Hayleen in the kitchen, then turned back to Karyn. "Don't let me keep you from your preparations, Commodore. I am certain this matter interests you far more than it does me."

Why did the concept of Karyn's in-laws interest Thrawn at all? Because he was stuck here and had nothing better to do? Karyn wouldn't get her job done if she wasted time decoding every cryptic thing Thrawn said to her, but that didn't mean she never thought about it.

Tabling that, she had more important issues to consider. How was she to approach her future relatives? The composition of Karyn's immediate family hadn't changed in sixteen years. For all that Hana loved to message Karyn, she'd never mentioned "Will" by name once. Did that say more about Hana's relationship with her betrothed or her relationship with her sister? How should Karyn treat this "Will" when they did meet? What did Thrawn's presence bring into this equation?

Questions upon questions, with no time to answer any of them. Without a sure strategy in mind, the best thing Karyn could do was project confidence. She intentionally modelled her outfit to be reminiscent of her uniform, keeping every detail sharp and neat. If Hana wanted Karyn to fill the role of a protective father, that was exactly what she would do.

When she returned to the kitchen, all the food was ready. A bottle of fruit-flavored sugar-wine was uncapped for the occasion, but had yet to be poured. Wine glasses were conspicuously absent.

"Oh, Karyn! You look great." Hana called out from behind. Her floral sundress fanned out behind her as she ran up to Karyn's side. Thrawn and Hayleen were nowhere to be seen. "I can't wait for you to meet Will. He should be here any minute now."

As if on cue, the entrance bell rang. With Karyn's hand locked in hers, Hana raced to the foyer. She threw the door open and leapt into the arms of the man outside without even pausing to check who it was. It wasn't until Hana pulled away that Karyn could get a good look at him.

William Sklar was an inch shorter than Karyn. He had black rimmed glasses slipping off the bridge of his nose and dark brown hair that stuck up in every direction. His green eyes glanced at her feet before meeting her gaze. A nervous smile formed on his lips when they did. He held his left hand out first, but switched to the right midway through. "Karyn, I presume. Hi. I'm... Will."

Karyn let a little too much nervous energy slip through in the handshake, squeezing his hand to the point of causing pain. "Nice to meet you. Hana's told me a lot about you, William. I'm glad we could meet in person before the wedding."

"I'm glad you could make it. Hana did tell me she invited you, but, well…" he broke away to push his glasses back up his nose, "she's said that same thing several times before, and… it's great you could take shore leave for this! You must be so happy to be home again. How long are you on Kohmbra?"

"Five more nights."

Hana looked from Karyn to William and back again, clapping excitedly after a few rounds. "Yay! This is a dream come true, you guys! Will, did you bring the glasses I asked for? Should I get them out of the speeder?"

William turned to Hana, and all the tension escaped his body. "I'll get them in a second. We brought sweets too. Your favorite… if my brother didn't eat all of them, that is. Hey, why don't you show Brendyn and Meg the place? They haven't seen the house yet. I want them to be impressed when we tell them how I'm…" he whispered the last part into Hana's ear, making her giggle. She left a smear of gloss where she kissed his cheek and ran outside.

"Here," William stepped aside so Karyn could exit the house. "Let's not block the entrance."

All four members of William's family greeted Karyn, though none approached her directly. Several seconds of strained silence passed between Karyn and William. Karyn forced herself to break it. "Hana tells me you're a true history professor now. When did you ascend from teaching assistant to sole classroom authority?"

"It's a recent development, actually. Just a month ago. Long story as to how that happened." He swallowed. "Remind me of your rank of your Imperial Navy, again? I remember you got promoted recently."

"I'm a commodore for the _ISD Chimaera_. Seventh Fleet."

"Seventh…" William's eyes turned towards the sky, then widened as they came down. "Wait. Grand Admiral Thrawn's fleet? _You're_ his first officer?"

Didn't she just say that? "Yes."

He covered his mouth. "Oh my stars… what is he like? Is he really a military genius? Did he actually execute a conscript in front of everyone because he tried to avoid blame for an honest mistake? Do his eyes really glow in the dark?"

Karyn resisted the urge to shake her head. Rumors about Thrawn came in all stripes of ridiculous, even among his own officers. Karyn used to put effort into addressing them, but if Thrawn never cared about his reputation, why should she care for him? She had since refined her efforts to only include those who could reasonably damage Thrawn's career if the wrong gossip reached their ears.

So in response to William, Karyn remained vague. If he wanted to know more about Thrawn, William was sure to get his chance later. "I didn't come home to discuss duty. Grand Admiral Thrawn is the greatest commander I have ever had the pleasure to serve. His record speaks for itself.

"Now tell me about you and my sister. What gave you the idea to propose to her?"

Visible disappointment. "Her graduation from university five and a half months ago. Her- _your_ mom had recently been cleared from treatment, and Hana kept talking about finding 'the next step' in her life. She didn't know what she wanted it to be yet, but she said she would miss seeing me at the university every day. Hearing her talk about taking the next step made me want to take the next step in our relationship. So I got down on my knees just after her graduation ceremony ended." He ran a hand through his hair. "I have to tell you, I had no idea she would get the wedding planned this quickly. I was busy getting your dad into the Hall of Heroes for most of it."

That was another thing Karyn was curious about. "Why did you do that for my father?"

"Well, I mean… tradition says suitors need to give the bride's father gifts for him to approve of the wedding. The nicer the gift, the better my chances, right?" William got no sign of approval from Karyn for his answer, so he continued. "Now, it was a little difficult to pick something for your dad, since he's long dead, but… his story is exactly the sort of 'everyman history' I try to emphasize with my students whenever I get the chance. Great man history is always, well, great, but real differences can also be made by ordinary people. Example: your father was one man doing his best to stall a fugitive one night. That's all. But his fight with a Jedi, brief and... unbalanced as it was, is the whole reason clone troopers managed to catch up to and kill an existential threat to the Republic. People like him deserve to be remembered by more than just his family. Now the whole planet has heard his story.

"Obviously, I don't_ know_ that's what your father would have wanted, but Hana really liked the idea when I announced it on his birthday, and your mother was happy too." William waited for Karyn's response. She didn't have one for him.

So he changed the subject a bit. "Hana told me you want to visit the historical archives later. I'm… sorry someone stole your dad's file. I spent a lot of time with those records. I hope they surface again soon."

"I don't just want to see them again. I want them back where they belong. I want whoever stole them to reveal their agenda and pay for their crimes." Karyn did her best to keep her tone flat, but bitterness seeped through nonetheless.

William stumbled backwards. "Um… wouldn't you rather enjoy your time with Hana while you have shore leave? Your mom, too? Hana makes it sound like you're always working. I'm sure the local authorities can handle this case."

"I will be with Hana. She's coming with me downtown the day after her wedding. It was her idea we investigate." Karyn raised an eyebrow. "Didn't she tell you?"

"Not all of those details exactly. Um… excuse me. I have to get the wine glasses out of the speeder. We should probably head back in." He ducked into the speeder before Karyn could respond, lifting a large crate out of the back. He bent down after leaving the box at his feet, examining two loose glasses while keeping his back to Karyn.

What was he doing? "Do you need help with the glasses?"

"No, it's fine. These two just came loose in the ride over. I wanted to make sure they weren't cracked." He placed the last two glasses in the crate with the others, then lifted the box delicately so as to bring it in. "Could you get the door?"

"I can." Karyn followed William into the kitchen, where Hayleen had reappeared in a brightly colored summer dress of her own. She had been chatting with William's parents when she noticed the two of them.

"Will, darling! Thank you so much for bringing these in." Hayleen waited for him to set the box down and unload a couple before embracing him. "So glad to have you all here before the wedding. Our extended family lives on the other continent, so they won't be arriving until the night before. But Emperor's blessings, Karyn is here for the event! You two already have a chance to talk?"

"A little bit, yeah," William replied as he pulled back. He turned to Karyn to make his next remarks. "Hana talks about her naval hero sister all the time. It's great to finally meet you in person."

"My daughters are my pride and joy. The greatest decision of my life was to bring these two into the world," Hayleen confessed to William's mother, who nodded emphatically.

"Of course! I don't know where I would be without my kids. Both my boys are such distinguished academics. And Meg! Whatever she does with her life, I know she'll be great." William's mother gushed, then turned to Karyn. "Good to meet you, Karyn. I'm Liza, and this is Greg. We love your sister and cannot wait to officially welcome her as a member of the family."

Greg nodded. "Oh yes. Lovely girl. Such a sweetheart. All my kids love her. None as much as Willie, of course."

"Dad, what did we talk about?" William kept his eyes down, glasses sliding off his face once again. "You have to stop calling me that."

The two men continued their conversation, forgetting about everyone else in the kitchen. Karyn used their distraction as a chance to speak with her mother. "Mom, where is the grand admiral?"

"He'll be back soon, sweetie. I just had to fetch him a few things for the guest refresher. Hana's maid of honor left her scented products in there again."

"We should tell this family he's here."

"I thought Hana already did that. She commed Will this morning, didn't she?"

Karyn thought back to her earlier conversation with the guy. Judging by his comments, there was no way he knew Thrawn was here. "I think she forgot to mention it."

Hayleen shook her head. "That girl would forget her brain if it wasn't strapped into her skull." She sighed. "Will you go find Will's siblings and let them know? I'll tell these three."

Karyn left the kitchen to search for them. She eventually found them in the master bathroom, of all places. Hana reacted to Karyn first. "Oh hey! Karyn, come on in. Brendyn, Meg, you saw my sister earlier. Karyn, this is Will's younger brother Brendyn and his younger sister Meg."

Both smiled and waved. Brendyn had the look of mild curiosity while Meg, who appeared to still be a teenager, could not care less. "Hi, Karyn."

"Yes, hello. One thing Hana hasn't told you yet. We have a guest in our house at the moment."

"Yeah, you. Hana mentioned you surprised her last night."

"Not just me." How was Karyn supposed to explain the situation? "Are either of you familiar with Grand Admiral Thrawn?"

Meg didn't look up. "Nope. Don't keep up with the Empire's wars of oppre-" she paused to remember who she was talking to, "wars."

"That's the blue one, right?" That got Brendyn's attention. "I've heard of him. Why?"

Karyn decided the best path forward was the straightest one. "Well. He and I were traveling together on the same transport yesterday. I was headed here on leave. He was en route to Coruscant. We… both received the news about the pop up solar storm while our transport was docked on Kohmbra. When my mother heard this news, she invited him to stay with us until the travel ban ends."

Meg's jaw dropped. Brendyn blinked several times in rapid succession. "Is… is he-"

"Grand Admiral Thrawn will be dining with us this morning. I do not yet know how long he will be here, but he is unlikely to remain for the wedding. I felt you all deserved an advance notice."

"Wait, Will didn't tell you all this?" Hana asked. "I told him earlier this morning."

"He did not." Brendyn shook his head, eyes wide. "Oh my… Will is going to ask him all the questions. I just know it. I kinda want to talk to him myself."

"I'll behave." Meg bit her words off like old bread. "We gonna eat, or what?"

* * *

**A/N's: This chapter was initially going to end somewhere very different, but I had to split chapter three in half because of how long it was. Introducing five OCs in one chapter is no joke, and I wanted to do all of them justice while still keeping the story moving. I hope you all appreciate the update.**

**Thanks for reading and all the kindness you've shown this fic thus far. I love you all and hope to see you on the far side!**


	4. The Incident

Master of the House

Chapter Four: The Incident

The two families very much were going to dine together. But first, everyone (including Thrawn) had to gather in the dining room and play a game of seat swapping. It was a formal dinner, and Hayleen was a stickler for manners and tradition.

Hayleen did her best to direct everyone to their proper place. "Master of the house sits at the head. Will, that will be you in two days, so go ahead and sit there. Master's (future) wife to his left, most honorable guest to his right. Hana, Grand Admiral. On the guest side next, we have in order: Greg, Liza, Brendyn, we can pull up a chair for you, and… oh. No guests at the foot. That's horribly rude." She had to think it over. "I will sit at the foot. Brendyn, sit next to Karyn who is next to Hana. Meg, take Brendyn's old seat. The one I have to fetch."

"...huh?"

"Come on, guys. It's not that hard." William sat down while Hayleen went to find Meg a chair. Once he and Hana were seated, the rest filled in pretty naturally. Everything but the wine and sweets had been moved to the table in Karyn's absence, and food began to rotate its way around.

Thrawn waited for Hayleen to return before he spoke. "Madame Faro, if you do not mind. I am not familiar with this planet's social organization. As this building's owner, are you not the master of the house?"

"Certainly not, sir. Traditionally, masters of the household are always men. Since there's been no men in this family for some time, the head chair stayed empty. Before now, I would sit where Hana is." Hayleen cleared her throat, taking a pancake off a plate as she did. "Now, some 'progressive' folk don't see a problem with ignoring that tradition, but I keep it."

William continued from where Hayleen left off after taking a large gulp of water. "Family hierarchy on Kohmbra historically runs on a gender basis first, seniority basis second. Example: this household. With no father in the picture, the next possible head of house is the eldest son. No sons present here, so then come son-in-laws. But this is where seniority comes into play in a rather interesting manner. If Karyn were married, her husband would rank above me regardless of his own age. He would have my spot, Karyn would have Hana's."

"Hm. Thank you." Thrawn stopped to pick food off a tray as well. Everyone at the table was staring at him, but no one wanted to say anything.

Finally, Greg jumped in. "So… you take commercial spaceflights, sir? I thought men of your rank took private Lambda shuttles for business travel."

"Many do, yes. I saw no purpose in the additional expense. At the time of planning, I did not foresee how one additional stop could impact my overall journey."

"Well, now you know," Brendyn responded, earning some glares for his flippancy. "Next time, shell out the credits for a direct jump."

"Indeed."

The silence that followed was unbearable, and Hayleen agreed. "Greg! We've had so few chances to talk as of late. How goes your job as a factory safety inspector?"

"Mm! Busy, as always. You know how every factory owner loves their productivity. Sometimes they install new additions rather suddenly and want to run full steam ahead, but I always have to check equipment first and again when there are problems. The foremen don't like that I can't be rushed."

Brendyn leaned in to whisper to Karyn. "Last two inspections, Dad found chemical leaks that were harming dozens of workers. My research lab is studying them. The first one was normaxicane, an exhaust product that causes stomach aches. Workers who inhaled large doses were calling in sick for as long as five days after initial exposure. But the real bad one's the fadacine, which is chemically identical to normaxicane but with an extra functional group tacked on the end. When this one enters the human stomach, it mixes with the acid inside us to form a super acid that can burn through the organ's membrane and cause hemorrhaging in rapid measure. This one had contaminated the water supply. It killed workers on their breaks in two hours tops. Victims likely felt pain in less than a minute, with symptoms starting mild and growing at a-"

"Brendyn, can you not? I'm trying to eat here." Meg pointed at her plate with her fork.

Karyn didn't mind. "That's fascinating. So you study chemistry?"

"Chemical engineering, specifically. My current project is to figure out what in the industrial process is causing these compounds to form and how to prevent that from happening." His eyes lit up with Karyn's interest. The table had since dissolved into three separate conversations: theirs and the two happening on either side of them.

"What do you know so far?"

"Not much," he admitted. "The biomedical researchers joined forces with autopsy droids to figure out how those workers died. Since this issue is a new phenomenon, my group has been going through updates in factory procedures to figure out how the new processes could be causing this problem. The stream of information from affected sites has been… slow."

"Brendyn!" Meg snapped. "Not while people are eating."

"What? That wasn't even the disgusting part." Still, Brendyn changed the subject. "So, Karyn. This is all very sudden for you, right? Hana told us that last time you were on shore leave, she and Will weren't even dating yet. Now they're getting married and you're meeting all of us for the first time. How is that?"

Karyn shrugged. "It's only natural that things change in my absence. I'm aware of that. I can see why Hana appreciates your brother so much." She glanced over at the two of them. Both were locked in conversation with Thrawn. "He certainly seems to make her happy."

Liza broke off from another conversation to interject. "Yes, I'm pleasantly surprised this is the first time we're meeting you, Karyn. Especially since Hayleen was so ill a few months ago. I kept expecting you to visit her sickbed, and it never happened. I daresay I wondered if our first sight of you would be at a funeral."

Karyn didn't let her gaze drop at the challenge. She fixed Liza with a hard stare, letting tensions rise silently between them. Karyn was about to respond when-

Hayleen cut her talk with Greg short to diffuse the situation. "Now, Liza. Karyn supported me through that horrible ordeal in her own way. I would never have been able to afford treatment without her help, and her navy friend, that… um, the pilot. What was his name, sweetie?"

"Commander Vult Skerris." Karyn smiled at her memory of him. If it hadn't been for him, Karyn wouldn't be here. After their joint mission with Lord Vader concluded, messages from home had been the last thing on Karyn's mind. But then she saw Skerris making a beeline to find out if his wife had given birth to their fourth child yet, and his anxiety had convinced her to check her own queue.

"Yes, him! His wife's no stranger to medical complications, and he taught our family how to navigate Imperial health insurance." Hayleen beamed. "We really must send him a thank you gift. Be sure to pass on my regards the next time you see him, sweetie."

"I will."

Liza pursed her lips, avoiding Karyn's gaze. Hayleen offered a daughter a sympathetic smile, then proceeded to ask Meg questions about her schooling. Karyn turned back to Brendyn, only to see he was trying to get William's attention. William, for his part, was giving a lecture on wedding customs to a fascinated Thrawn.

"...Those are the traditions we got from abroad. Now, there are some local traditions that Hana and I aren't including in our ceremony. Most notably, anything involving her being carried by others. Centuries ago, the bride would be carried on a lift by her family members to the wedding venue, up the aisle by her father, and into her new house by her husband. This is because footbinding, the intentional practice of breaking and bending a girl's feet bones to permanently fold inward, was popular on Kohmbra for millenia. Deformed feet were a widespread fetish among Kohmbran men until well into the High Republic era four centuries ago, when propaganda campaigns from abroad convinced them that 'freewalking women' were more desirable."

"You like my 'freewalking' feet, Will?" Hana teased, causing William to lose his train of thought. "My big feet are sexy to you?"

"Um… I think everyone prefers being able to walk moderate distances without severe pain. At least nowadays, they do. I would pity you if you couldn't. Let's see, what else are we not doing… oh yeah! This tradition mattered more for elite families, but the idea that a marriage ceremony wasn't over until the moment of consummation was a popular one until maybe a century ago. So to make sure politically important marriages went without a hitch, notable family members would follow the new couple into their bedroom and…" he gulped, "watch the groom take his bride's virginity. If the bride didn't bleed from this process, they wouldn't think she was a virgin and the marriage would be annulled." William looked down at his plate in disgust. "Sorry. Not great brunch conversation, I know."

"I do not mind. Thank you for providing me with such detailed context, Professor Sklar." Thrawn nodded respectfully. "May your union be blessed, physically and otherwise."

"Oh my stars, I would _die_ if your mom had to watch us on our wedding night!" Hana squirmed. It was at that point she realized Karyn was watching them. "That's another reason Dad's picture got moved, by the way. I don't want him watching Will and me later."

_What? _Was… was Karyn missing something, here? "Hana. Why would you and William be using Mother's room on your wedding night?"

William and Hana shared a glance, each conveying markedly different emotions. While William focused on confusion and urgency, Hana's expression was a mixture of epiphany, pleading, and… fear? Karyn couldn't help but notice the table go silent before William responded. "Hana... doesn't like the apartment I currently live in. She thinks it's too small for the two of us."

"I_ think_? Will, you live in a shoebox!"

"She asked me to move in here after the wedding and take over the master bedroom with her. After our wedding night, while you two are… downtown, I will be returning to my apartment and packing up my things. Some of my clothes are already here, but it will be a few days before the move is complete."

Karyn didn't even realize how harsh her expression was until William withered beneath it. "I'm sorry, Karyn. I thought these two told you already."

"I would have mentioned it, I swear. I just didn't know you were coming home until last night, and then I wanted you and Will to meet before I sprung the news on you. Mom is moving into my old room. I promise we won't do anything to your stuff," Hana wrapped herself around Karyn's right arm, begging with her big brown eyes for Karyn's heart to soften. _Don't be mad, _they said.

But Karyn wasn't even sure she was mad. Surprised, yes. Hurt that neither Hana nor Hayleen thought this information was worth sharing with her, certainly. Just because she couldn't always take their calls when they came didn't mean she didn't care about what was happening in their lives.

Her mom and sister knew that, right? Karyn had always believed they did. She wasn't sure anymore.

For now, those eyes gave Hana _way_ too much power. Karyn pat Hana on the head with her left hand, then ran fingers through her hair. "You two know your future needs better than I would. As long as Mother is okay with it, I suppose I am too." Karyn broke away from her sister's gaze to stare down William again. "After all: why subsist on a professor's salary when you can live comfortably on mine?"

William flinched from the implications of that comment. Hana didn't seem to notice. She buried her face in her sister's chest once again, then tilted her head so her voice could be heard. "Thank you, Karyn! I knew you would understand. Once brunch is over, I promise we'll catch up on everything I haven't had a chance to tell you about in holomessages. From now on, there will be no more secrets between us."

Thrawn took an entirely different approach to this conversation. "I didn't know your monthly paycheck went here, Commodore." He glanced around the room. "I forgot how little commodores were paid. It's been so long since I served as one."

Liza covered her mouth. Brendyn had the audacity to laugh. Karyn, doing her damnedest to think the best of Thrawn's intentions, took a deep breath in before she replied. "I send a large part of my paycheck home, yes. When my mother fell ill, sir, the portion easily became a majority. Because my mother has yet to return to work, that arrangement is still the case. The rest I save for myself in case of emergencies, personal expenses, or taxes."

"It's true, Admiral. Karyn basically bankrolled my entire wedding, from the venue to the dress to the food and even the bachelorette party!" Karyn received another side hug for her troubles. "This wedding is going to be a dream come true. I'm so glad you're gonna walk down the aisle with me!"

"Alright, alright, enough with the money talk." Hayleen jumped in before anyone else could speak. She noticed an empty platter in the center of the table. "Does anyone want more eggs? I can return to the kitchen to cook more, if anyone missed their chance."

Greg smiled, eager for the distraction. "We're fine, Hayleen. Thank you. You and your daughters did a splendid job preparing our meal today."

"Yes, thank you Hayleen." Liza smiled as well, though hers was more pinched.

"Actually, can I have some more eggs?" Meg asked. "Scrambled, if that's okay."

"Of course it's okay, dear. Just give me one moment." Hayleen sent Karyn and William warning glares before disappearing back into the kitchen.

Meg's parents looked at her. "What? She offered."

Maybe her earlier assessment was unfair. Karyn looked back at William, ready to make things up to him. "I suppose this is still somewhat related to your job, but earlier, William, you told me there was a story as to how you were promoted to full professor at the university. What happened?"

Karyn thought she'd asked the question in good faith. Instead, it had the opposite effect. "Natural that you'd be curious, I guess. The truth is, I take no pleasure in how I gained my position. Before last month, I was a teaching and research assistant to Dr. Colyn Fischer, the most senior and well-renowned historian on the planet. He had been a teacher for over forty years, had a reputation for being unfiltered, and his lectures were always filled to the brim with students. This semester for the first time, he decided to offer an advanced intensive called _From Falling Republic to Rise of Empire: a Study in the Causes and Effects of the Clone Wars_. He and his students both started the semester enthusiastically until… one lecture Dr. Fischer delivered to his class. This was about a month ago.

"Now remember, Dr. Fischer is quite old. Over half his lecturing career took place in the Republic days, before the Clone Wars even began. He grew up and lived with a very different perception of the galaxy than what we have today. That…" William clenched and unclenched his hands several times while looking for the correct word, "explains, but does not excuse his views on the Jedi Order. Views he expressed in class one day and offended some of his students. Said students reported him to the Empire for sedition, using quotes taken out of context to do so."

Greg shook his head. "Such a waste of talent. Willie introduced Dr. Fischer to me seven years ago. We all knew him. But you idolized him, didn't you, Willie?"

William glanced from Karyn to Thrawn, very conscious of how he ought to word his response. "I… he was the one who made me want to study history. I was on the engineering track before I met Dr. Fischer. If I wasn't his assistant, I might never have met Hana. I understand why the university forced Dr. Fischer to recant and resign, but I still wish things could have been different."

"Me too." Meg sighed. "I was supposed to take his intro class as a freshman next year. He promised me a spot."

William sighed. "And since the university was too pressed to find Dr. Fischer a suitable replacement mid-semester, they offered me his job. I was familiar with Dr. Fischer's work, and all his students already knew me, so the choice made sense. But after what Dr. Fischer did, the Empire couldn't just leave me alone in the lecture hall. So now I have an Imperial representative as a student this semester on top of everything else. Inspector Brekker sits in the back of all my classes and most of my office hours, is always cordial, and takes better notes than most of my students." Hana snorted at the end. William cut her off with a shake of the head.

"Your mentor is lucky that early retirement was his only punishment. Sedition charges usually warrant far stricter consequences." Karyn could think of a few examples. Most of them were from the Outer Rim, however. Imperial rule took very different forms depending on where one lived in the galaxy.

"I guess. But there you have it," William threw his hands outward in surrender, "that's how I became a professor. Circumstances aren't great, but the students and I are both doing our best. Because of how extensively I'm being evaluated right now and how chaotic things are, Hana and I are delaying our honeymoon until the semester is over."

"Will the resort moon be cold if we go during the winter?" Hana asked. "That isn't how it works, right?"

Karyn and William responded as one. "It is not."

"Oh, good. I don't have to buy a coat."

Hayleen returned from the kitchen with a pan of scrambled egg. "Here you go, Meg dear. Anyone else want more food while I'm up?"

"No thank you," Brendyn replied. "We have everything we need, Mrs. Faro."

"Yes, Hayleen. Why don't you sit down and finish your own meal?"

There was a bit more conversation after that. Hana continued to gush about her wedding with Hayleen and Liza's encouragement, Brendyn and Meg cracked jokes at their brother's expense, and William and Greg did their best to reign everyone in. Thrawn remained silent for the time, though his eyes revealed him to be an active observer. No matter how many questions William asked the admiral, he never spoke for long.

Around noon, everyone stood from their place at the dining table. They all stacked their dishes off to one side of the sink and raided the box of sweets the Sklar family had brought over in their speeder. Brendyn had opened the box on the way to the house, but he'd only eaten a single pastry. Hana was on her third in a matter of minutes. "I love these! The chocolate ones are the best. Here, Karyn," she practically shoved one in her sister's face, "remember these?"

She did. "I bought them for you when you and Mom came to my graduation ceremony from the Imperial Academy. These, and sugar straws."

"Oh yeah!" Hana laughed. "I was a ten year old high on sugar for your entire ceremony. I don't remember much of it."

"Thanks to you, Mother doesn't either."

Pouting. "It was your fault. I was ten! You bought me all those things."

She didn't regret it, either. Karyn had always loved to make her sister smile, even when they were both children. Hana was always so cute and innocent, a welcome reprieve from the daily demands of Karyn's life in the navy.

"Come now, sir! Just try one. It's a delightful new experience." Greg could be heard coaxing Thrawn into eating a sweet a short distance away.

"No thank you, Mr. Sklar. I do not enjoy sweet foods."

"It's not that sweet. It's more… creamy. And rich. Come, sir. Just one bite." Greg kept trying to leave the pastry in Thrawn's hand while Thrawn continued to hand it back. This went on for some time.

William came over to speak with Hana, nodding to Karyn as he did so. "Hana, are you ready to let the wine flow? Mom's asking. It is your personal bottle, right?"

"Oh yeah! We have that." Hana beamed. "I dug out a bottle of peach moscato for today. It's still your favorite, isn't it, Karyn?"

It had been at one time. Back before Karyn developed a tolerance for the taste of alcohol and still needed large amounts of sugar to disguise it. "I still enjoy it, yes."

"Yay! Let's go get some. You want to drink with us, Will?"

William shook his head while keeping an affable smile on his face. "You two go ahead and get first drinks. I know it's important to you."

Hana led her sister over to the corner with the wine and glasses. Meg poured for them with a dour look on her face. Liza loomed over her shoulder. "Will got the designer transperisteel glasses for you, Hana. Hearts for 'his sweetheart'," she filled one glass on the counter nearly to the brim, "and stars for the 'explorer of the galaxy'." The second glass received considerably less wine than the first.

"Oh, they're even cuter in person!" Hana squealed, snatching up her glass with obvious glee. "I love it."

"You didn't consume any alcohol before I caught you, did you Meg?"

"No, Mom. Will just asked me to pour for his lovely bride." The last part of that sentence did not escape sarcasm. "I provide others with a treasure I cannot possess."

Karyn thanked Meg for the drink, leaning in as she did so. "When I was your age at the Imperial academy, cadets would drink whenever they were off duty. I got exposed to a lot of different planets' wines that way."

Glower intensifies. "Good for you."

Karyn followed Hana back towards Greg and Thrawn. The miniscule bite in the pastry told her everything she needed to know about who won their previous argument. "Decided to engage a bit further in the local cuisine, Grand Admiral?"

"Mr. Sklar here convinced me it was the duty of a host to provide his guest with bites of every dish at the feast, particularly if the guest was from a distant planet. It is not my wish to be impolite."

"They're good, right?"

"I have partaken as you desired. Do not press me further." This time, Greg took the hint. He faded into the background without another word.

"How are you doing, Admiral? Did you like the food?" Hana asked.

"You and your mother did an admirable job preparing plenty for everyone. You as well, Commodore." Thrawn nodded ever so slightly at Karyn. The two locked eyes for a moment. Hana kept glancing between the two of them before getting her own idea about what was happening.

"I'll leave you two to talk. Bye, Karyn."

Thrawn exhaled when Hana left. Karyn stood next to him, leaning on the kitchen counter behind them. She swirled the contents of her glass in one hand, watching the liquid spin.

"I'm sorry for all the interpersonal drama you've had to witness this morning, sir."

"Your reactions are understandable, Commodore. For all that you try to remain rational in a time such as this, the family environment does not lend well to levelheaded dynamics. Particularly not among civilians."

"How are you?"

Thrawn eyed the wine glass in Karyn's hand with envy. "...I believed my previous experiences on Imperial naval ships and among civilian bureaucrats was enough to prepare me for sustained social interaction with humans. My assessment has failed me in notable key areas. Understand I mean nothing personal towards your family members."

"No, I understand. Would you like to step away from the party for a minute, sir? Have you told anyone on Coruscant where you are?"

"I gave Grand Moff Tarkin advance knowledge of my flight plans. He knows of my situation. As a fellow attendee of the meeting, I am sure he will be a sufficient messenger to the others with regard to my status."

That… wasn't how meetings like this worked, if Karyn had any understanding at all of them. How could Thrawn be a grand admiral for so long and still not grasp these matters?

He was staring at her glass again. "Is that… alcohol, Commodore?"

"Yes, sir."

"Is it much?"

"No, sir."

"Are there bottles in this house that contain a higher percentage of alcohol?"

"Likely not, sir. Neither my mother nor my sister enjoy hard liquor."

"Hm." Thrawn pursed his lips, evaluating his options.

Karyn glanced away from Thrawn to see if anyone was watching the two of them. Meg quickly averted her gaze, as did Brendyn. Everyone else was too wrapped up in their own conversations to notice.

"Would… would you like to try a bit of my wine, sir?" Karyn held the cup in front of him. "I must warn you that its contents are also sweet."

"If you do not mind, Commodore." Thrawn took a long sip of her wine, then immediately cringed.

"How do you like it, sir?"

"I find it absolutely rancid, Commodore." In his desperation to erase the taste, Thrawn took a second, larger bite of the pastry in his other hand. He bit into the chocolate filling this time, leaving a slight drizzle on his chin.

"You… left a trace of chocolate on your face, sir." Karyn let her finger hover over the spot just beneath his lip. "Right there."

Thrawn reached for a napkin and wiped it away. "Thank you."

"Feel free to retire to the guest room at any point, sir. I can explain away your absence if necessary." She put her lips to her glass of wine, breathing in its familiar cloying scent. She hadn't had this drink in years.

"..." Thrawn didn't respond. His eyes began to bulge, and his balance slid backwards until he collided with the counter behind him.

"Grand Admiral?" Karyn held out a hand to steady him. He gave no indication he even heard her. "Sir, what's happening?"

"...pain, Commodore. I'm in…" out came a garbled string of words in what Karyn recognized as Thrawn's native language. His red eyes clouded over. His hand dropped down to clench his stomach. Thrawn's posture, which had been so straight throughout the morning, gave way to steep hunch as the admiral tumbled forward.

Karyn heard her wine glass shatter on the floor as she went to catch him. The crash caught everyone's attention. Hana screamed at the sound.

William's eyes bulged out of his head at the sight. "What the stars?!"

"Karyn, what's happening? What's wrong with him?"

Thrawn was too heavy. Karyn couldn't keep him upright for very much longer. She directed him away from the shards and let his body slowly drop to the floor.

She looked around the room, infuriated by all the blank stares she received back. "Don't stand there. Call for a medic. Call poison control. Get ISB on the comm right now!"

The civilians moved, though not as quickly as they ought. Karyn felt her entire world crawl to a standstill as she stood over Thrawn's semi-conscious body. She tried to make eye contact with him. She tried to keep him alert.

She felt for his vitals. The signs were all over the place. For the first time in years, Karyn felt true, unadulterated swells of panic rise in her chest.

This couldn't be happening. Not here, not now.

Not to him.

* * *

**A/N's: This is where I originally wanted chapter three to end. I have to get to class, so I may update these notes later. Hope you enjoyed the read, don't forget to leave a review below, and I will see you on the far side!**


	5. The Confusion

Master of the House

Chapter Five: The Confusion

Karyn watched from the front doorstep as medics whisked Thrawn away in an emergency vehicle. She tried to accompany him on his journey, but the stormtroopers dispatched to the case stopped her from following. Their orders were clear: no suspects leave the house until the investigation clears their names. Hard to do when the chief investigator had yet to arrive on the scene. Karyn had no idea what was taking so long, only that the act of waiting was fraying her nerves.

Hayleen approached her from behind, laying a gentle hand on Karyn's back so as to not startle her. "Sweetie, why don't you settle down in the living room with the rest of us? You've done everything you can for now. The admiral is getting help. I'm sure they'll tell us when he recovers."

_If he recovers. _Karyn shuddered at the thought, waves of nausea rising up from her stomach. Here's to hoping the sensations were all emotional. She followed her mother's lead back into the house. Hayleen closed the front door behind them.

Six pairs of eyes landed on Karyn as she entered the living room. Everyone was seated except for the four stormtroopers who guarded the entrances to the dining room and kitchen. The white suited men made a clear point of _not_ looking at Karyn.

"Karyn! Come here, sit with us." Hana shifted from her place next to William into his lap, leaving an empty seat for Karyn to take. "I'm sorry this happened. You must be so worried."

"Where is the lead investigator? I want to know who is responsible for this assassination attempt."

"He'll be here soon, Commodore Faro. Not much longer now." A stormtrooper answered.

Gasps. "You… you don't think anyone did this on purpose, do you?" Hana asked.

"How could it be an accident?"

"Maybe the admiral has food allergies," Greg offered, a pale cast to his face. "There was a lot of food here he'd never had before. Maybe he didn't even know he was allergic to something until he tried it."

"Exactly," Meg agreed, voice shaky. "I know you just met us, but none of us are murderers."

"No one here meant to kill anybody. This is all just a tragic accident." William realized the implications of his words only after he said them. "I mean, I'm sure Grand Admiral Thrawn will be fine. He... probably won't die. Right?"

"Hey! We don't know how to classify the circumstances yet," said the same stormtrooper who spoke before. "My men and I are here until we can be sure of the truth. No one touches the crime scene until then."

"We can't even clean up the glass shards on the floor?" Liza asked, perplexed. "Those could seriously hurt someone."

"That was very dramatic, by the way. Nice one, Karyn." Brendyn smiled, expression fading the longer Karyn glared at him.

Karyn turned away once Brendyn was properly subdued. "Trooper, who is the chief investigator assigned to this case?"

"Lieutenant Weylen, ma'am. He's the best officer the governor can possibly send right now to work the case. Trust him to get to the bottom of this."

That wasn't saying much. Not when the best investigator currently on Kohmbra was being rushed to a hospital as they spoke. If Karyn was proud enough to consider herself the second best, then she was automatically excluded from the investigation by nature of being on shore leave. And that was before one factored in the personal nature of the case for her. If the troopers' orders were any clue, she had not yet been eliminated as a suspect.

Karyn scoffed. A suspect. As if! The very idea of hurting Thrawn made Karyn sick inside. There were easier ways to seek promotion. The whole galaxy would be worse off if it lost Thrawn. And Karyn… Karyn would be beside herself if this was how her magnificent commander died. Standing over him as the light faded from his eyes had done something to her. Something she didn't want to put words to.

Yesterday, Karyn had believed Thrawn judging her over house decorations was the worst thing that could come of hosting him here. What simple thoughts those seemed now.

Karyn's eyes, though empty, were fixed dead ahead of her. She didn't know she was staring at Meg until Meg stood up to ask the stormtroopers a question. "I'm allowed to leave the room, right?"

Beat. "Why do you ask?"

"I… need to use the refresher."

Two stormtroopers looked between each other, as if trying to figure out what Meg's request entailed. Karyn groaned. "The guest refresher in this house has no windows. She won't escape from there. If you troopers are worried, just send one of your number to stand outside the door and… listen for moving vent shafts."

"Yes, ma'am." They did just that, much to Meg's chagrin. The teen and her escort were back in under five minutes.

Hana sensed her sister's despair. She shifted in her perch atop William to face Karyn, breaking an arm free to run fingers through Karyn's hair. "He'll live, Karyn. He's survived so much war. You both have. If giant space battles can't kill the admiral, some bad food won't either."

If only that was how the galaxy worked. Karyn sighed, not trusting herself to say more. She leaned into Hana's touch, letting the repetitive motions soothe her. The whole group waited in silence for what seemed to be an unbearable stretch of time.

Finally, an officer in grey marched through the door. His cap obscured large portions of his face, but he looked to be about Karyn's age. Karyn stood immediately to greet him. Confused, Hana did the same, causing WIlliam to groan. "Lieutenant Weylen, I presume. Thank you for coming. I am-"

"Commodore Karyn Faro, I'm aware." He smiled. "You shouldn't have to presume, you know."

"Excuse me?"

A pause, followed by a snort. "I'm not surprised you don't remember me, but part of me_ is _disappointed." Lieutenant Weylen removed his cap, exposing sand colored hair and pale blue eyes for Karyn's benefit. "And here I thought we left the academy on good terms."

Now she remembered. Karyn didn't let her expression change with the realization. "Jasper. We lost touch when you transferred out of the navy. I didn't know you landed back here."

"I had the option to work from home and took it. Ship life isn't for all of us." Without elaborating further, Lieutenant Weylen let his eyes wander to Hana, scrutinizing her figure. His face lit up as he did so. "And Hana Faro. You were a tiny kid when I met you. Definitely _not_ a little girl anymore..." He shook his head, returning to the case at hand. "So how is it a grand admiral of the navy collapsed here, of all places?"

Brendyn spoke before anyone else could. "Well, you see. My family and I were all invited here believing it to be a pre-wedding party. But sometime after brunch, the gathering _might _have shifted genre into a murder mystery party. I'm not sure how."

"A wedding?"

"Yeah, mine!" Hana piped up, stepping aside so William would be visible. He waved. "Will and I are getting married in two days! Karyn came home last night to be in the ceremony, and her boss- um, the admiral- was on the same transport. He got trapped on Kohmbra by the bad space weather, so Mom invited him to stay with us until it got better."

Lieutenant Weylen raised an eyebrow at Hana's chipper retelling of events. That, or the knowledge she wasn't single. Hard to tell.

He pulled out a datapad and began entering details. "So that's why Grand Admiral Thrawn is here… wait. Don't top brass people take Lambda shuttles instead of commercial?"

"Dude's cheap, apparently."

"I see…" Did the lieutenant honestly have to write that down? "So. No one planned for the grand admiral to be here, is what I'm hearing. The most time any of you had to plan an assassination attempt was one night. Explains why it failed so miserably."

Long pause. All visible expressions fell on the spectrum between relief Thrawn was still alive and apprehension towards the suspicion now upon them.

"Excuse me, Lieutenant sir." Hayleen coughed, then raised a finger. "What did you say about an assassination?"

"I stopped by the private hospital wing for a briefing before coming here. The grand admiral arrived in a matter of minutes. The doctors and droids are still looking into the exact nature of the poison, but the fact that he was intentionally poisoned is indisputable. Since the poison was detected early and help was called for right away, the medics are certain he will make a full recovery. Projected timetable for his discharge uses hours as its unit of time, given that the grand admiral is fully alert and mentally stable when he wakes."

Lieutenant Weylen flashed his datapad in the group's direction despite knowing full well no one was close enough to read it. "All this to say, I don't believe_ all_ of you were in on the job. If you were, the grand admiral would not have received help. Only one _or _some of you wanted the grand admiral dead. But that the culprit intended harm is established fact. I will accept no accident pleas."

Karyn nodded. "I suspected as much. Your investigation has my full cooperation, Lieutenant. You can ask me anything you need to know."

Lieutenant Weylen pulled his cap back over his forehead so that only his grimace could be seen. "Noted, Commodore." He gestured to the stormtroopers. "To the kitchen. Suspects... and/or witnesses stay in here. No one leaves the room without me saying so."

All but one trooper followed the lieutenant into the kitchen. Once the lieutenant was out of their sight, Karyn and Hana sat back down on the couch. Brendyn, who was seated on Karyn's other side, waited for Karyn to meet his eyes before speaking. "I guess you were right. Sorry none of us believed you."

Liza sniffed. "I still say this is ridiculous. We had no idea that man was even _here_ until just before we ate. How could anyone in my family have planned to poison him?"

"What kind of a hostess lets her guest be poisoned at a formal meal?" Hayleen was on the verge of tears. "This is a travesty. At least he's going to live."

"Thank the stars for that," William agreed.

Greg hesitated for a moment before changing the subject. "So, Karyn. You know the chief investigator?"

"I did at one time. We were in the same year at the same Imperial Academy." Aware that the lieutenant could likely hear them from the neighboring room, Karyn left large pieces of information out of her summary. "We received different assignments upon graduation and kept up an inconsistent communication until nine or ten years ago, when he made the choice to transfer out of the navy. This is the first I have seen or heard of him since."

"He seemed pretty hurt you didn't recognize him."

"I don't know what else he expected." Karyn turned towards the entrance to the kitchen, doing her best to make out the state of the investigation.

"Woah, Lieutenant! Watch the glass there."

"What is this? There was no glass found in the admiral's body, to my knowledge."

"You'd have to ask the witnesses about circumstance, sir, but Commodore Faro is the one who dropped her glass."

Lieutenant Weylen tutted. "The investigation is going to be hard pressed to recover any evidence from this mess. Scattered in so many pieces on the floor, it would be easy to miss something vital. Hm… I'll assign a droid when we have one to scan the area and construct a model of the original glass. We'll scan its contents as well, though who knows how clean the floor is here. In the meantime, we must do our utmost to preserve the shards' positions. Do not step on them."

"Lieutenant… don't we already know what was in the glass? Look at this one." A trooper spoke up, perhaps pointing to the glass Hana had abandoned in the chaos. "Sugar wine. From that bottle over there, I bet."

"Someone can't handle real alcohol."

"The commodore can. Trust me on that." More sounds of typing. "We will have this glass and the bottle analyzed as well. Remember, men, our first order of business is to find the path the poison took into the admiral's system. We know he ingested it, but he ingested a lot of things this morning. Only once we know what food was poisoned will we move on to who could have committed this crime. Now, what are some other items we should check?"

"These dishes haven't been washed yet, sir. DNA will tell us which one was the admiral's."

"Ooh, a box of pashra-sueet. I love these things!"

"Don't eat one, trooper! They might be poisoned."

"There's a smushed one on the floor here, sir. There's a bite taken out of it. Did someone else drop it in the excitement?"

The list went on and on. Such an approach to the investigation wasn't what Karyn would have done, but she didn't necessarily have objections to this method.

She hadn't considered the difficulties she would cause an investigation by dropping her glass. It had been a spur of the moment decision to release it in favor of catching Thrawn. If Karyn had tried to catch him while holding the glass, it may have broken on impact and impaled him.

Somehow, Hana was able to guess what Karyn was thinking at that moment. "Don't worry about the glass, Karyn. I know it was an accident."

Lize shook her head. "Still, what a shame. The design on it was truly exquisite. Meg and I were admiring a few on the speeder ride over here."

"Mom!" Meg cast a furtive glance about the room. She went on to elaborate, "I… nearly dropped one when we were taking them out of the case. It sounded like it cracked when it happened. That… may have been the stars one you had, Karyn."

Hana waved her in-laws' concern away. "It's not a big deal. We'll get an exact replacement later."

William cringed. "Um… do we have to buy an exact replica? That set was handcrafted, and we still have eleven other glasses. Buying just one doesn't come with the group discount, and… the set was a lot of money."

"Awwwww, but I liked that glass! The star engravings were so pretty. Remember when we passed it in the little store?" Hana fixed her gaze on Will, one hand caressing his neck while the other tugged on his belt buckle. She shifted her weight so her chest leaned on his. All gestures were gentle, but the implication was clear. "I told you how nice I thought the glasses were, about all the fancy events we could host with your faculty friends and trustees over at the house down the line… can't we buy just one more again?"

Concern faded from William's face as Hana touched him. His sharp eyes dulled as he replied, "...if it's that important to you. I can buy the glass again."

"Yay!" Hana sat up, wrapping both arms around William's neck as she beamed. "Thank you, Will. I love you."

He returned her grin, still a bit dazed. "Love you too, Hana."

Pause. Hana kept her eyes locked on him, a new expectation implicit in her stare. Karyn wasn't sure what she was fishing for at first, but William automatically knew. Magnetized, he put his arms around Hana's waist and pulled her in for a long, passionate kiss, at which point Karyn averted her gaze. As did everyone else.

They all let the couple continue for a minute, but Brendyn cut them off when the moaning started. "Can you not wait two days for this? Or, you know, for a time when we're_ not_ all trapped in the same room?

William pulled away first. "Sorry, guys. Got carried away."

Meg, though also disgusted, just shrugged. "We've both crashed on the couch at Will's apartment before. I feel like we should be desensitized by this point."

"Okay, but even if the noises didn't bother me, and they do, there's a stormtrooper right there whose literal job it is to watch us right now."

"No one asked him to," Hana grumbled, moving into a less suggestive position on William's lap.

He groaned. "Hana… could you get up for a minute? My legs are getting numb."

"Sure." Hana stood up and crossed the room. She sat on the armrest of Hayleen's chair. Meanwhile, William went about the tasks of stretching his legs and recovering his wits.

Hayleen patted her daughter on the shoulder. "I know you're excited, darling, but let the troopers finish their work. Your wedding is so close. You and Will shall have the night to yourselves then and every night after that."

Karyn leaned in to whisper to William. "I'll give you credits for the wineglass. Just let me know how much."

"Huh? Oh. No, you don't have to do that."

"I'm the one who broke the glass. It's only right I pay to replace it."

William straightened his glasses, doing a poor job of hiding his relief. "Thanks, Karyn."

Of course. If William wasn't strong enough to put his foot down with Hana, the least Karyn could do was make sure he kept his promises. With that settled, she went back to eavesdropping on the investigation.

"...all we know so far, Lieutenant. I know the poison's unusual, but that's what the toxicology droid matched the admiral's stomach contents to in our system. The admiral is in a state of varying consciousness behind me."

"Alert?"

"Hardly."

Was there a comm call taking place in the kitchen? From the hospital? Who was on the other side of the line? Karyn did her best to hone her focus, ignoring the chatter of relatives.

"Great. When you can, tell the alien we're on the hunt for poisoned items, and we will find whomever nearly filled High Command's dream of having a human-only council again."

"Ooh, careful there. Our reports say Commodore Faro is the one who ordered us brought to the scene in the first place. She was the most torn up of everyone about the attack on the admiral. She can make our lives very difficult, you know."

"Oh, please. She likes anyone who gives her a path to promotion and, if I remember her right, will do anything to receive another. Even… hm."

"Don't we all do that, Lieutenant? You've got to let the past go, man. I… don't disagree with you about the admiral, but think of this like an opportunity. If you have results for him by the time he's discharged, maybe we'll start liking Grand Admiral Thrawn, too. Get me?"

"I do."

"Good. Sargeant out." End of call.

Karyn wasn't sure if she wanted to laugh or fume. The audacity of these lower officers was remarkable. She hoped Thrawn had been awake enough to hear them gossip. He wouldn't have to be as subtle if he was the one who punished them later.

"Troopers! Adjust your scanners to detect anything in the" long chemical name "family. We have confirmation that that poison was the weapon of choice in this case."

"The industrial waste? Who would think to use that, sir?"

"We'll know soon enough."

The troopers scanned items on their list one at a time, reporting their results each time they did for the lieutenant to record. As of now, every result was negative.

"What are they doing in there?" Brendyn asked. He'd been watching Karyn the whole time, but his place in the room wasn't as optimal for eavesdropping.

Karyn glanced at the trooper observing them. If she admitted to knowing all she did, he could warn the lieutenant of what was coming. That would give Lieutenant Weylen and his friend time to cover themselves. Karyn didn't want that to happen, so she shrugged. "I can't hear much. It sounds like they're scanning the entire kitchen for signs of… something. Poison, probably."

"I wish they would take our statements. The sooner they know no one in my family has anything to do with this, the sooner we can get back to our business." Liza crossed her arms, leaning on her husband for support.

Greg pulled her closer. "Liz, honey. What happened to the admiral is a terrible thing. If we can help the Empire find what clever outsider tracked the admiral here and slipped poison to him in such an intimate setting, it's our duty as citizens to cooperate. An attack on Grand Admiral Thrawn could well be an attack on the Empire as well."

"Or it could have nothing to do with politics. Not every crime in the galaxy is treason, you know." Meg was with her mother in wanting to leave. "Not like we'd know. How can we help the investigation by just sitting here?"

"Impatience raises suspicion," Karyn warned, silencing everyone with three words. Or so she thought.

"You're stuck here too, _sis_," Meg fired back. "You've spent more time with the admiral than anyone else here. Should you really be telling other people how suspicious they look?"

Hana jumped to Karyn's defense. "Hey!"

William stepped in. "Meg, don't. Like you said, we don't know anything. Let's not let our concern for the admiral turn into anything we might regret."

Meg still intended to argue until Greg put a steadying hand on her forearm. She shared a look with him, then conceded. "Fine."

From that point on, everyone in the living room kept their mouths shut. Now everyone could hear the investigation taking place in the other room, if not every word distinctly. When the lieutenant's comm beeped again, over a dozen people perked up to listen.

"Lieutenant Weylen speaking."

"He's awake."

"What?" Clattering noise from the kitchen. Had he dropped his comm? Lieutenant Weylen took a second to retrieve it. "The admiral?"

"Who else? He passed every mental and physical test the doctor gave him and signed himself out of the hospital just now. He's joining you at the scene with an additional escort. Do you have what we talked about yet?"

_No. _"Yes. Most of it, anyway. I'll… I'll be ready."

"You better be. Remember what I said earlier. Sargeant out."

Karyn breathed a sigh of relief. Thrawn was coming. She was going to see him again. She could explain herself to him and they would be able to sort this whole mess out together. No more sitting on her hands once he showed up.

"What's going on? I didn't hear a thing." Hayleen looked to Karyn for clues. Her face said it all. "The admiral… he's accepting visitors?"

"He's out of the hospital," William clarified. "He's on his way here."

"Who wants to bet he's mad at us?" Brendyn asked. That curbed their enthusiasm somewhat. The silence that followed was simultaneously tenser and more bearable than before.

They heard Thrawn arrive before anyone saw him. Lieutenant ordered everyone to remain in the living room as he straightened his attire, then met Thrawn in the foyer. The closed door did little to muffle the exchange that followed.

"Grand Admiral! It's a great honor to meet you. Shame the circumstances had to be so dire. Are you well?"

"I suspect I would not have been discharged were I not… Lieutenant." Thrawn's voice sounded the same as it always did, reassuring Karyn even further. "And you are?"

"Lieutenant Jasper Weylen, sir. The governor himself placed me in charge of finding your poisoner. Rest assured we will catch who did this to you."

"What evidence have you gathered so far?"

Was Lieutenant Weylen about to attempt what Karyn suspected? If so, he was even more of an idiot than she remembered. "Sir, this may be hard for you to hear, but…." His voice grew quiet as he went into his explanation.

Oh stars, he was. Karyn should probably take this seriously, but she had trouble believing Thrawn would buy any of it. Karyn knew her own innocence. Bar major sabotage, the evidence would reflect that.

Thrawn's voice remained calm even after Lieutenant Weylen finished his explanation. "I see. And tell me, Lieutenant. What does your suspect gain from this performative stunt? What need has she for ingratiation?"

"Professional advancement. Plain and simple." He was way too confident for the circumstances. Perhaps he wasn't able to read the situation yet.

"Beyond the suspect's current position? You think rather highly of my ability to influence promotions, Lieutenant. For all that it returns the favor, I regret to disappoint you so."

"Um… excuse me, sir? Could you explain what you mean by that?"

"Before I do, tell me one more thing about your theory, Lieutenant. You and I are both aware of the exact poison that sought to claim my life. Am I correct?"

"Yes, sir."

"Forget how your suspect was able to feed me poison for a moment. How is it they acquired such an item without my noticing? As you have already admitted, the two of us spent much time together. What gives the suspect her means? Do not let her inability to coordinate with anyone in the Sklar family before the fact slip your mind."

Silence. Karyn couldn't see Lieutenant Weylen's face through the door, but the epiphany of failure spreading across his face was an image vivid as the one before her eyes. She shouldn't smile, but she did.

"Well, Lieutenant?"

"I… have no evidence that answers your question, sir."

"And yet you wanted to present me with a suspect anyway. Let this be a lesson going forward for you, Lieutenant. When I ask for evidence from you, I am only seeking your observations and the data that underpins them. Your conclusions are presumptive, ill informed, and stem from a place of insincerity. Draw no more of them for this investigation."

"But… sir! I'm in charge of this investigation. It's my job to make conclusions, here."

"Hm. You are correct that such a position would necessitate higher levels of thinking on your part. But since you have proven yourself unsuited to the task, allow me to relieve you of the responsibility. I will explain my reasons to your governor when the time comes. He will decide what to make of you then."

"You're kicking me off your case… sir?"

"Not exactly, Lieutenant. All I expect is that you follow my instruction in investigating this case from now on. If you prove capable of doing that much, then perhaps I will recommend you keep your current rank at the end of our time together."

A cowed sigh. "I… I see, sir. Thank you for forgiving me."

"I wouldn't go that far." Thrawn opened the door to the living room before Lieutenant Weylen could respond. Everyone in the living room did their best to look as if they hadn't just been listening in on the officials' private conversation.

Thrawn's eyes landed on Karyn first. His eyes emitted a faint, focused glow, letting Karyn know better than anything else that her commander was feeling well. He nodded ever so slightly towards her.

Thrawn was fine. He believed in her. For one moment only, all of Karyn's worries evaporated into thin air. Then she remembered the gravity of the situation. "Grand Admiral, sir. You've recovered."

He turned to face the rest of the group. "I have, to someone's great misfortune. As you may have heard, I am now in charge of investigating this morning's incident. I shall allow the lieutenant and his troopers to continue their work in the kitchen while I speak to each and every one of you in private. Madame Faro?"

Hayleen flinched. "Yes, sir?"

"What room in this house is the least convenient for eavesdropping?"

She had to think about that. "Well… this house isn't known for its thick walls. I would probably have to say the master bathroom is hardest to listen in on. You can't access it directly from any room except the master bedroom, after all. It shares no walls with any other room. I'm confident it's spacious enough to set up a few chairs in there, sir."

"Then that is where I will be. Each of you will meet me there at a different point in time, some of you more than once. Do not discuss what I ask of you with anyone else. Commodore Faro?"

Was she going first? "Yes, sir?"

"I will speak to you about the case last. In the meantime, I am aware you are on shore leave and under no obligation to serve my ends. If you are willing, however, I would like you to investigate some locations beyond the household for me."

He had to ask? "I'll do anything you need, sir."

"Good." Thrawn gestured for her to come closer. He whispered his instructions into her ear. "The poison that sought to claim my life is colloquially known as fadacine. In your reconnaissance, I want you to investigate with two goals in mind. First investigate the origin of all food, drink, dishes, and cutlery used this morning. See if anyone outside this room had a way of contaminating one or more of the items. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir."

"If this search brings only negative results, return here to tell me as much and await further instruction. I will tell you where to travel next based on what information I can gather from the witnesses present. Your second goal will become apparent at that time." He stepped away once he had finished, giving Karyn a full view of all the eyes that were again on her. Thrawn's next instruction he relayed in normal volume. "I have brought a half dozen more stormtroopers with me to this house. You are free to take up to four for your purposes, Commodore. They will be instructed to follow your command."

"Thank you, sir. I will take two."

"You're integrating her into the investigation?" Liza asked. "She was here with the rest of us when you were, um… attacked, sir."

Thrawn didn't catch her point right away. "As was I, if you would recall. I fail to see why… ah. As the lieutenant and I discussed earlier, the commodore lacks sufficient means and motive for me to suspect her at this time. As she is accustomed to how I manage my affairs and willing to assist me, I believe my investigation would benefit more from her efforts than from those of another local.

"As for the rest of you, I suggest you tell me the full truth when I speak to you later on. At this time, I suspect foul play and have eliminated no other suspects."

* * *

**A/N's: Sorry I made you all wait a bit longer with this chapter. I really wish I could have updated on Valentine's Day, but I had to do some planning for how this chapter fits into the rest of the fic. I know we lost a little momentum from the previous two chapters, but I needed to slow down a bit to set more up for the finale. It may not seem like this chapter has as many clues in it, but there are a few scattered about, plus some characterization that I consider important.**

**Lieutenant Weylen is the last important OC to be introduced in this fic. Fun fact: he and Inspector Brekker (Will's classroom friend) are named after characters from Leigh Bardugo's Six of Crows duology. Their namesakes have no influence on their roles or personalities, but that is where I got them. Also, though the final line may seem pretty typical for a(n attempted) murder mystery, I took it almost directly from Rian Johnson's Knives Out, which I have seen three times in different theaters. That movie is also where I got the name and basic idea for Meg's character, among other things.**

**Hope everybody is still enjoying themselves, thank you for all the love and support I received thus far, and as always, I adore y'all's reviews. Until next time!**


	6. The Investigation

Master of the House

Chapter Six: The Investigation

"I'm sorry, Commodore. I… I truly have no ideas for how someone could have done what you're describing." The salesgirl gulped, hand swiping at the beads of sweat dripping down her neck.

"And you are certain of that?" Karyn asked, tone mild.

"Yes! No one in our bakery has any connection to the closed factories. We made dozens of pashra-sueet this morning on routine. Your customer came in and bought some right at opening without a special order. We pulled the pashra-sueet from the display right here," she pointed, "And placed the box directly into his hands. If one of our sweets had a problem at that time, they all would. We… we've sold over two hundred today alone. You're the only one who's said anything about them."

Karyn frowned, which only distressed the salesgirl even more. All the bakery's customers were watching the show, curious to see what drama would unfold next. And here Karyn thought she'd been delicate. "I see. Thank you for your cooperation. If you could leave me with a list of everyone who handled the morning batches of pashra-sueet, that will be all I require."

Rapid fire nodding. "Y-Yes ma'am! I will have that list for you right away. I was working then, so I know who was on shift in the kitchen. Let me…." She scribbled a list of names onto the back of a receipt. It was a small bakery, so there were only three names to add alongside her own. "Here you are. I promise none of us could've contaminated our product. Not even by accident."

Karyn handed the list to one of her troopers without so much as a glance. By now, he knew what to do. After one minute of datapad shenanigans, he shook his head.

No overlap. Not even a relative in common with the known sources of fadacine. Just like the last six places she'd tried.

"Our business here is finished." Karyn nodded to the salesgirl first, then the bakery customers. "As you were."

_Well, this was an enormous waste of time. _ Karyn understood the need to eliminate possibilities of an outside saboteur, but she was accustomed to delegating such a menial task. This was something she could see Lieutenant Weylen handling after his failed meeting with Thrawn. Was it arrogance to think her talents were being wasted, here?

What reason did Thrawn have for giving her such a thankless role? He must have one. Was there something she was supposed to notice on this chase around the city, something not explicit in his instructions but vital to the investigation's grander design? He hadn't expected her to find fadacine at the start of any supply chains. That much was clear from the beginning. All signs pointed to a later introduction of the murder weapon, an introduction that only came when… when her relatives arrived in the picture. Relatives/future in-laws, at least.

Be it Hayleen, William, or Brendyn, all the items on her list were clean when they came into the partygoers' possessions. From that point on, they and all others in their immediate family had ample opportunity to contaminate at least one item. The real question was which one of them had possessed both means (access to poison) and motive to execute the attack, all without any time to premeditate.

Was that what Thrawn wanted her to know? That Karyn truly wasthe only one above suspicion in this case? She already knew that! She'd known that when he was still in the hospital.

Maybe Karyn could coax an explanation out of him when she gave her report. She and her pair of troopers were already on their way back to base. She would drop in on him during one of his interviews, give him the news he already expected to hear, and maybe get a few questions answered before he sent her on another wild bird chase.

Karyn didn't want an onslaught upon her return, so she and her troopers entered through the front door as quietly as possible. She directed a trooper towards the master bathroom via the hallway route and was content to wait with the remaining trooper for her summons in the foyer. Fortunately for her, the occupants of the living room were too busy chatting among themselves to notice anything.

She picked up on Hana's voice first. "I have no idea what you mean. My sister isn't scary!"

"Correction: to you. She is not intimidating _to you._ You aren't her target, here."

Somehow, that offended Hana. "Will! Don't be so judgemental to Karyn. She's gonna be your sister too, you know."

Hayleen stepped in at this point. "Will darling, please don't think too harshly of Karyn right now. She's worried about her admiral, that's all. I'm sure Karyn will warm to you once this mess is cleaned up. Why, I bet she's out there right now, finding evidence on the real assassin."

"All while said admiral remains here, scaring us each one by one within an inch of our lives." That dry tone had to be Brendyn.

"Oh come on, he's not so bad either! Mom and I were the first two to go, remember?"

"It's true, dear. The admiral was serious, certainly, but very civil, even when I was… less civil. Remember that he was present for this morning's events as well. I'm sure he just wants all of you to fill in gaps for him. Describe your trip over and such."

"Yes, my interview was similar to that." Liza blew past Hayleen's platitudes. "So what is he doing with my daughter, then? They've been in there for twice as long as I was."

Karyn heard a door opening to her side. She stepped away from the living room before the person entered. Her shoulders dropped in disappointment when she saw who it was.

At least Lieutenant Weylen had the decency to look ashamed. "Commodore Faro, you're back. I… want to talk to you."

"I would like to report to the grand admiral. Were you with him just now, Lieutenant?"

"A few minutes ago, yes. I was giving him an update on forensic findings. He and the girl are having an interesting debate about what it means to be a rebel. Is possessing anti-Imperial beliefs enough, or does someone have to meaningfully act on those beliefs first?" Lieutenant Weylen waited for her to weigh in. He was disappointed when she did not. "I tried to offer my opinion, but the admiral didn't want to hear it."

"Are you surprised?"

Sigh. "No. Can we please talk about that, Commodore? Karyn?"

"You will address me by my rank, Lieutenant." Karyn kept her eyes on the door to the hallway. "We have nothing to discuss with regards to this case."

"I messed up, okay? I jumped to conclusions the evidence doesn't support. I'm sorry. But can you blame me? The last time you and I were, um, _close_, all you did was use me to get ahead. Is it so hard to understand why I thought you hadn't changed?"

_She_ used _him_? Oh, that was rich. Jasper spoke as if he hadn't relied on her to pass every history, science, and strategy class at the academy all those years ago. Not that it'd been enough for him. They hadn't even graduated in the same quarter of their class. But he'd introduced her to his uncle the Kohmbran governor (plus friends) a total of once in their final year, so _clearly_ that was why she'd made lieutenant instead of him. Emperor forbid there to be room for merit considerations in the Imperial Navy.

Karyn was surprised she remembered such things. All these issues were over a decade in the past. How were both parties still so bitter? "Let me see if I understand you, Lieutenant. You attempted to accuse me of trying to assassinate my commander to said commander's face without a shred of conclusive evidence because of our past together as teenagers?"

"Well… when you say it like _that! _Of course it sounds worse than it really-"

A trooper came up behind Lieutenant Weylen, cutting him off. "Commodore Faro. The grand admiral is ready for you. You know where to find him."

Karyn got one more shot in before she left. "You know, Lieutenant, until you showed up in my house earlier today, I had forgotten you existed. I'm sorry you weren't able to do the same, but that's out of my control."

Lieutenant Weylen stuttered after her, but he had no response. Of course he didn't.

Karyn did her best to put the lieutenant out of her mind. People like him weren't worth her thoughts. Though hard work and luck in receiving meritocratic commanders, she'd left most of them in the dust. He couldn't touch her now.

She passed another trooper and entered the master bedroom at the tail end of Meg's spheal. The bathroom door was half open, but Karyn couldn't see anyone from where she stood. "...do get along with her most of the time, yes. But that doesn't mean I don't know what happens when you try and tell her no. There's no getting around it. Hana's had Will whipped from the minute they met. She got to the rest of us later."

"She physically assaults your brother with a ropelike instrument?"

"What? No! Why would you… oh, right. Slang's different on other planets. I'll try again." Meg tok a loud breath in and out. "Forget tradition and history for a second. If you look only at results, Hana is the real master of this house."

"And to which 'results' would you be referring?"

"Will moving here, for one." Meg snorted. "My brother doesn't care about his living conditions! Him coming here is all Hana. Stars sake, Will once camped out in the college library for three kriffing weeks! Dr. Fischer was driving him nuts to find… I don't know, something for a research project, and Will discovered a hidey hole to avoid the librarian in when closing time came. Then, when a fellow TA friend of his found out what he was doing five days in, Will convinced the guy to bring his pillow and join him in their stack fort. Those two turned over the entire history section in the dead of night all by themselves. Will didn't leave until Hana tracked him down and told him how much she missed him, how he was going to drive himself crazy by working so much, and how they would never_ ever_ make love in a public space. Once she mentioned that last bit, Will was back in his apartment like _that_." Meg snapped her fingers.

"The young professor is... attached to Miss Faro. That much is apparent."

"It's not just Will, either. Why is Karyn home right now after years of never visiting? Hana. Why is my mother's favorite jewelry on that counter instead of back at our place? Hana. Why is…"

Karyn couldn't stand here any longer. She'd hoped the interview was reaching its conclusion and that she could enter when it was over, but Meg's diatribe showed no signs of stopping. Any longer, and Karyn's inaction would qualify as eavesdropping. "You asked for me, Grand Admiral sir."

"Karyn!" Meg's cheeks lost their color upon Karyn's entry. She was sitting in a chair dragged in from the dining room, as was Thrawn. On the sides of Thrawn's there were markings. Extra decorations that only one chair in the household possessed.

Why had Thrawn chosen the master's chair for himself? What purpose did he possibly think that would serve? Yes, the seat conveyed power, but… not the kind he probably wanted.

Thrawn waited for Karyn's eyes to return to him before addressing her. "I did, Commodore. Forgive me. I believed Miss Sklar and I were reaching the end of our conversation when one of her asides caught my interest.

"Thank you, Miss Sklar. You may leave now. Tell your second brother to come in next, if you will."

"Sure thing." Meg wasted no time getting out of there. Karyn waited for the bedroom door to close before turning back to Thrawn.

"Well, Commodore? Is there any chance of an outsider being my poisoner?"

"None that I have found, sir. No handler of this morning's food, drink, dishes, or cutlery had any connection with fadacine. Not until the items were received by their customers, at least."

"And the customers were?"

"My- Hayleen Faro purchased all of the food for the brunch itself as well as a new set of cutlery in the recent past. The dishes on which food was served have not left the house in over twenty years, so they were not included in my search. Hayleen Faro also picked up the wine involved in the incident weeks ago at Hana Faro's request. William Sklar both paid for and picked up the wine glasses, but while his credits were used to buy the box of pastries, he sent his brother Brendyn to pick them up from the bakery early this morning."

"I see. And you are certain no item could have been poisoned before they entered these individuals' possession?"

"I am reasonably certain, sir."

Thrawn leaned back in his chair, expression unreadable. "I anticipated this scenario. But you already knew that."

"Yes, sir."

"Does this revelation answer the question you have of me, then?"

He was trying to catch Karyn off guard. But he'd used a similar tactic on her too many times before, and this time, Karyn was ready for him. "If you have to ask, sir, you already doubt the effectiveness of your method in this instance. If you would like to resolve this issue with clarity, I suggest you be more direct."

That got the smallest of smiles out of him. "The question I believe you are asking of me is twofold: why I am so eager to direct your investigation outside the home of your childhood and why I interrogated your closest relatives first, when you had the least chance of bearing witness. Both inquiries have the same answer. For all that I do believe your competence as an officer would prevail, I did not wish to subject you to personal conflicts of interest any more often than necessary. I realized only afterward the exact nature of the matter with which I had requested your assistance. I have asked you to consider your own family capable of murderous intent, and by assigning you the mission I did, forced you to understand there are no other possibilities. It is as your mother said. I... ask a lot of you, Commodore."

Karyn was shocked. Such a confession was unusually forward of Thrawn. She'd desired it, but hadn't expected to receive such honesty. As such, she felt compelled to respond in kind. "You gave me a choice, sir. I accepted your offer of my own volition. No… no one who would seek to murder you is true family of mine, sir."

Thrawn blinked. He inhaled, but no response came. It was during this period of silence that Brendyn came barreling through the door. "Whoo! My turn in the hot seat. Oh hey Karyn, I thought I heard your voice earlier… wait. Am I supposed to address you as a commodore right now? Does this count as you being on duty?"

Karyn shrugged. She walked over to stand at Thrawn's left. "Pick one and stick to it, for consistency's sake. I will not intrude on this interview. Do you have any further tasks for me to complete, Grand Admiral sir?"

Thrawn glanced at her, then back to Brendyn. At Thrawn's gesture, he took a seat. "I do, Commodore, but my instructions will not be complete until this conversation reveals a vital piece of information. My earlier interviews have left me behind schedule. You are free to observe in the meantime, if you wish. If not, please wander no further than the master bedroom. I see no reason to summon you twice."

"Do you mind, Brendyn?"

He leaned forward, speaking to Karyn in a stage whisper. "Does it matter which one I pick?"

"Choose whichever one you're more comfortable with."

He pretended to think about it. "Well. Seeing as both my options end with you hearing the whole thing, you might as well stay in here."

"Then I will. Grand Admiral, sir?" Those were the last words Karyn said for some time.

Thrawn leaned back in his chair, folding his hands together. "Good afternoon, Mr. Sklar. Thank you for your patience and cooperation with the investigation today."

"I didn't have a choice, but sure. You're welcome."

"Describe your current occupation for me, Mr. Sklar."

"Well…" Brendyn leaned back in his chair, tilting its balance until the chair's back hit the counter behind them. "I'm a graduate student in the university engineering school at the moment. I do lab research on anything the university tells me to whenever I'm not in class. Sometimes I supervise younger students in labs as well."

"Not unlike your brother, then."

"...No, I guess not. But while Will buries himself in databooks and ancient scrolls, I'm up to my elbows in chemicals and protective gear." Brendyn laughed. "Will was supposed to be an engineer too, you know. Kriffing traitor."

"You resent his career choices?"

"Nah. Teasing him's enough. It's probably for the best, honestly. Will would've made a horrible engineer."

Thrawn paused. "You mentioned laboratory research, Mr. Sklar. Tell me about your current projects."

Brendyn raised an eyebrow at the change in subject. "Sure. Right now, I'm assigned to the team investigating the underlying causes of factory closures here in the city. You already interviewed my dad about them, right? I'm sure he explained the situation then."

Thrawn narrowed his eyes ever so slightly. "I specifically requested the content of my interviews not be discussed outside this room. Are you telling me your father disobeyed instruction, Mr. Sklar?"

"No, not at all! I just figured since you asked me about my job, you must have asked everybody. Investigating factories is my dad's job. If you asked him about his occupation, the topic of the closures should have come up."

Did Thrawn believe that explanation? There was no way to tell. "Forget what your father may have told me, Mr. Sklar. I want to hear you describe your current efforts."

Brendyn swallowed, then gave a description that more or less matched what he'd told Karyn at brunch. At the end of it, he shifted his chair back into its upright position and mused, "are we getting to the part of my interview where your poisoning occurs? I don't see what all of this has to do with… oh stars." His hazel eyes lit up like a Life Day tree. "Fadacine! You're the first known survivor of fadacine poisoning!

"It all makes sense now. Your symptoms earlier, the quick reaction, the hospital's initial confusion in figuring out what you got dosed with, your lieutenant's inability to scan for the poison directly because it's not in the database yet and you need to use its chemical family as a proxy, your interest in my and Dad's work… wow. How did I not see it before?"

"Did you only realize it at this moment, Mr. Sklar?"

"Well yeah, why would I have any prior… wait. What are you implying?" Brendyn leapt to the edge of his seat. "I didn't dose you, if that's what you're thinking. If I was gonna poison you at brunch, why would I tell your second everything I know about the very poison I intend to murder you with? What sort of competent assassin does that?"

"Who said we were looking for a competent assassin?" Thrawn turned to Karyn. "Did Mr. Sklar tell you about fadacine prior to the incident, Commodore?"

She nodded. "In some detail, sir."

"Also, in case you haven't heard already, no one in my family knew you were going to eat with us until literal minutes before brunch started. Karyn can confirm. She was the one who told Meg and me the news earlier today in this very bathroom." Brendyn waited for Karyn to nod again, then continued his argument. "I don't just randomly bring vials of poison with me to family gatherings. Do you have any idea how many lab safety regulations that would violate? Sir, I'm sure you're an amazing admiral that all rebel scum would love to slay, but it is not worth my scholarship for me to watch you go floordiving."

Thrawn took a second to process all that. "Your scholarship is your main point of concern here?"

"Among other things, yeah." Brendyn gasped. "Like jail! I forgot jail for a second there."

Thrawn turned to Karyn and repeated, in complete deadpan, "he forgot jail." It was all Karyn could do to prevent herself from reacting. She had to hold a hand over her mouth.

"Look, sir, my point is that I had no motive for bringing fadacine into this house. Even if I knew who you were -and I gotta be honest, I still don't entirely- _and_ wished you dead, I wouldn't be able to kill you, least of all by dosing ya."

"Why is it you were alerted to my presence so late, Mr. Sklar? Miss Faro is certain she told your brother in advance during a call they shared."

"Miss Fa- oh, Hana? Yeah, don't believe her. She remembers a lot of things that didn't happen."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Uh-" Brendyn offered Karyn an endearing grimace before answering. "Nothing bad. Hana's nice, I like her. We all do. She's just… not the brightest star in the parsec. I'm sure she_ does_ believe she mentioned you to Will this morning, but that's not a detail Will would have kept to himself. I think she just meant to tell him and forgot." He gestured to Karyn again. "You know she does this. You must have realized it too, or else you wouldn't have come in and found me about it."

"Can you attest to this, Commodore?"

"I can attest to telling this man and his sister about your presence shortly before brunch commenced, sir. I have nothing definitive to say about the comm call."

"I see," Thrawn mused. "Allow us to return to a previous topic of discussion, Mr. Sklar. You mentioned your work in the university laboratories."

"I did, yes."

"Is your conduct well regarded in those environments?"

"I… don't know what you mean, sir."

"Do you follow laboratory procedure well? Document all your findings, properly clean and store all your materials, adhere to safety regulations, and all such things?"

"Oh! Then yes. I'm very careful. You have to be with something like fadacine. Even its milder cousin normaxicane's a pretty nasty customer. I was running tests with normaxicane early this morning before the freshman labs started. I didn't see anyone else in there until right when I was cleaning up. The professors have to really trust you to give you access to a lab unsupervised."

"Thank you, Mr. Sklar… ah. Before we continue, I would like to give the commodore her new orders."

Brendyn held his hands out. "Don't let me stop you…?"

Thrawn glanced at Brendyn, silent as he pondered his options. After brief consideration, he addressed Karyn in Sy Bisti. "There are two places from which the poison could have been acquired for use here, one from father and one from son. The father keeps a small vial of this specific amount," he gave her the number, "in his work office for future presentation to a labor union in their pending legal suit. His office building is currently open, and I do not imagine you will face any difficulty accessing the specific room.

"The second, as you heard, is in the possession of the local university. This young man here has the greatest ease of access, but any interaction he has with the chemical must be extensively recorded. Pay close attention to chemical amounts and watch for any unexplained discrepancies. Since he claims he was running experiments with the milder variant, be sure to check both poisons. I can see this task presenting slightly more complications, so be sure to obtain the lieutenant's signature before you leave. He is still the official head of the investigation, and all datawork reflects that. Make it clear to him this order comes from me and that his reputation relies on compliance. When you have checked both sites, and do examine each one closely regardless of what you find first, return to me in this room and report directly. Take the same troopers as before, but tell no one else of your mission."

"Yes, sir." Karyn saw no reason not to respond in Basic. "I will bring you the results as soon as possible." She went to leave the room.

Brendyn blinked, incredulous. "He… you taught Karyn your native language, sir?"

"That is not my native language, nor did I teach it to the commodore. Back to our conversation. Tell me about..."

Karyn got what she needed from Lieutenant Weylen without incident. For all his pouting, he did respond well to direct orders. Cursory research allowed her to find the location of Greg's office without asking him directly, so Karyn was able to depart without ever entering the living room.

Greg's office was a fairly standard affair. The floor receptionist let Karyn and her troopers in without question and willingly showed them the storage unit for fadacine. The vial's unbroken seal had its date of application printed on top: nine days ago. The tick marks within the vial matched the amount Thrawn had specified. A quick interview with the receptionist revealed that Greg hadn't come to his office at all today or yesterday. Karyn did her due diligence, but there was nothing to be found here.

On to the university. The professors and administrators there were considerably less cooperative, what with last month's drama in the history department still fresh on their minds. The professor currently supervising upwards of a hundred seniors in the lab she needed to access tried to argue that Karyn's shore leave disqualified her from investigation, but the campus attorney overruled him. All Karyn had to do was don the appropriate safety gear to enter the chemical storeroom and investigate both samples and records.

For some reason, the professor believed Karyn knew absolutely nothing about chemistry. "Here's Mr. Sklar's lab journal. This morning will be on the last available page. While I doubt you'll be able to make sense of it, let me assure you that nowhere in its contents does it say chemicals were removed from this building. I've had that kid for three of his courses, and I bet you every drop is accounted for."

"We'll see about that."

"Every chemical is referred to by its skeletal formula in the journal itself, molecular formula on the vials. This one," the professor laid a grubby finger on the top of the displayed page, "is what we call normaxicane. Notice how the ending 'tail' is all hydrocarbons. If you go back three pages to… this spot, this one is fadacine. Note how the end has different elements specified on the 'tail'."

"Thank you, Professor. You may return to your class."

"And let one of you Imperials break something or harm yourselves? I would be liable for that! My grad students can handle things for a few minutes. I shall remain here."

"Very well." Karyn was tired of arguing by this point. All she wanted to know was the start and end locations of every drop of fadacine in this building. Was that so much to ask?

Nothing in the journal seemed out of place, not that it surprised her. If Brendyn wanted to use the poisons in a less controlled setting, he wouldn't confess to his crimes that easily. Instead, she first checked the pages to make sure she knew which samples had been disposed of. A quick check with the professor also let her know how much of each substance had been permanently removed by other parties. WIth this information, Karyn knew exactly what amount of each chemical should be present in the storeroom.

Breath full of grumbled warnings, the professor directed Karyn's party of three to the shelf on which normaxicane and fadacine were both stored. The shelf was eye level with seven columns stretching back to the wall. Because both normaxicane and fadacine used the column in the middle, it was hard to know where one poison ended and the other began. "This seems like a lab accident waiting to happen."

"Don't be ridiculous! Every researcher knows to check the formula on their vial before they break the seal. And even if they don't read the name, look," he took one of each vial off the shelf. "Notice how the list of hazards is longer on the fadacine? This label is far more colorful than the one on the normaxicane. Any chemist with access to these dangerous chemicals knows to set up safety material according to the hazards specified here. Surely in that process they'd realize they hadn't grabbed the normaxicane they meant to take, or vice versa."

"Perhaps." Karyn did a tally of the fadacine first, counting by volume instead of vials because some containers were larger than others. When she got to the middle row, the one with the smallest vials, she noticed something strange. Something that threw her count off. "Professor, this vial right here. It doesn't have warning labels at all."

"What?" He snatched the item right out of Karyn's hands. "This isn't supposed to be here! It's from the freshman lab. This sample belongs over… here." He turned to face the shelf behind them. "No wonder Rebecca couldn't participate this morning."

Karyn had to prevent herself from jumping to conclusions. "Is there a chance this could be a mistake, Professor? Could a freshman have put their sample here on accident?"

"Absolutely not. Freshman don't have access to this room. Only graduate students and above are authorized to take directly from the storeroom, and they have no reason to touch an underclassman's stuff."

"Is there a matching fadacine vial on the shelf behind us?"

"I think I would have noticed if a freshman keeled over and died this morning, Commodore. Alternatively, if said freshman had the sense not to just open a strange vial, they would have turned it in to me. Neither happened." The professor dabbed furiously at the bald spot in his head. "Oh no…"

So this was where the murder weapon had come from. Brendyn's lab. Finally, some answers!

For the first time today, Karyn's efforts had led to a breakthrough. She played at searching the rest of the room like Thrawn asked, but really she wanted to report as soon as possible. Karyn and her troopers departed from the university soon after the missing vial discovery.

When Karyn returned to the house, the trooper at the master bedroom door forbade her from entering. Thrawn currently had Hana in questioning and didn't consider it appropriate for Karyn to intervene. She would have to wait for them to finish.

So Karyn took the opportunity to collect her bearings in the guest refresher. She'd gone into brunch this morning dressed like a paragon of confidence, but the day's chaos took its toll on her. By late afternoon, her appearance was a mess. She had to fix it.

Why she'd gone to the guest refresher instead of the one she shared with Hana, Karyn would never know. For an unconscious decision, this one choice of room sure had a lot of consequences.

While Karyn was searching for a brush in the sink cabinet, her eyes landed on a scrap of torn paper someone had discarded on the floor. She picked it up, flipping it over so she could read the writing. The letters didn't form any word she knew, but the order was familiar. Same for the paper type was printed on. It was a… chemical formula? The beginning of one?

Karyn stood, intending to hold the scrap up to the light. As she stepped back, her foot hit the refresher's disposal bin ever so slightly, causing the clinking sound of glass to release into the air. _Seriously?_

Using a hand towel to prevent transfer of her own prints, Karyn lifted the lid to the mostly empty disposal bin and noticed a wadded up ball of tissues at the very bottom. Those tissues had been utterly useless in their intended purpose. Karyn stripped them away one by one to reveal…

A chemical vial. Seal broken, label removed.

* * *

**A/N's: Sorry, guys. I had to split a chapter in two again. This one was supposed to end with Karyn and Thrawn coming to a realization about the culprit's identity, but then I realized I hadn't explained everything that I needed to in my initial outline (notably, what happened to the vial of poison), and I had to tie up those new threads as well as the ones I was prepared to tie up. Then this chapter got really long and I personally don't like having wildly variable chapter sizes. Not everyone cares, I know, but I do.**

**That said, I had fun with this. More characterization for Weylen, Meg, and Brendyn, with a nice Tharo moment sprinkled in for good measure. I hope you all can tell how much I love this fic and all the OCs I have in it. They have become real to me over the past month and a half.**

**With regards to the mystery... we're getting close, guys. Suspect list is narrowing down, and even if you can't fully eliminate some people, there are those few who've got more strikes against them than all the rest. We're not quite ready to confront the culprit (that's chapter eight, now), but it's headed that way.**

**Hope you all enjoyed, thanks for sticking with me, and as always, feel free to leave your thoughts in a review. Be back soon!**


	7. The Analysis

Master of the House

Chapter Seven: The Analysis

Karyn held up the vial in awe. A missing sample from the university. An empty sample discarded in the refresher. No way those things were coincidence. She had to tell Thrawn about this.

She stepped out of the refresher in haste, colliding with William as he traversed the narrow hallway. "Ah!" He started. "...Oh. Hi, Karyn."

Karyn hid the vial in her sleeve. No point letting any civilians in on the investigation's progress. "William. Why did you leave the living room?"

"Because Grand Admiral Thrawn wants to talk to me. I'm the only one he hasn't spoken to yet. I thought I was supposed to go after Brendyn, but then he asked for Hana again, and they've been in there for a really long time. I am after her, though. The trooper," he pointed at the one guarding the master bedroom door, "did tell me that much."

"Why not wait with your family?"

"Because we're all going nuts cooped up in there! Brendyn's gone full comedian- that's how he copes with stress, by the way. The more serious a situation is, the more jokes he makes about it. He's _wonderful_ at funerals- Meg won't leave me alone, my mom keeps demanding we be allowed to leave, Dad won't speak at all, and nothing your mom does to pacify anyone is working. Just… be happy you aren't there." William removed his glasses momentarily, pinching the bridge of his nose. "How's the investigation coming?"

"It is ongoing." Karyn knew better than to reveal important information. Painful as it was to endure, letting the suspects stew in their own thoughts was a vital part of any investigation. Those who were innocent should recover easily enough. As for the guilty ones... guilt was a fascinating phenomenon, for amidst one's very act of hiding guilt is when it shines through most.

William waited to see if he would get a more comprehensive answer. When it was clear he would not, he continued to speak. "Brendyn said you were present for his interrogation. Only the first few minutes, though. I… thought I did hear you and the lieutenant in the foyer earlier, but I wasn't sure."

"That was me, yes."

"..." William gestured for Karyn to continue. She felt no inclination to do so. So he did. "The way Lieutenant Weylen described things, it sounded a bit like… well, I know it's not any of my business, but… were you and him romantically involved at some point?"

"You're right, William. It is none of your business." That came out harsher than intended. Karyn backpedaled slightly. "We can chat about personal matters later, okay? I want this investigation finished first. I'm essentially on duty right now."

"I get that. It's just… I _am_ trying here, okay? Hana idolizes you. I…" he struggled with how to phrase the next bit. "I just wish I knew you the way she does."

"Then stop trying so hard. You look desperate."

William's mouth popped open, then closed again. He was still trying to put a response together when Hana came storming out into the hall. Her face burned pink, tears forming in the corner of her eyelids.

"Hana, hey. How'd it go in there?"

"Awful." Hana declared, throwing her arms around William. "That man doesn't know the first thing about love!"

"Do I want context?" William mouthed to himself out of Hana's sight. Aloud, he said, "Grand Admiral Thrawn is not known for that, no. Was he harsh with you?"

"Mmhm! Way more than last time." Hana pulled away. She noticed Karyn standing there for the first time. "I'm soooooo sorry, Karyn! I messed up when your admiral was asking me questions earlier. I got confused, and… and ruined your whole investigation!"

"Hana, no. You didn't ruin anything. The investigation is running fine." Karyn glanced at the bedroom door to make sure Thrawn wasn't coming, then gestured to Hana. "Come here."

She caught her sister in a tight embrace, sleeves riding up slightly as she wrapped her arms around Hana. "Good girl. Breathe with me."

"Okay."

Karyn held her there in silence, taking slow, even breaths until Hana's matched hers. It was something Karyn had learned to do when Hana was small. Somehow, it still worked. When Karyn pulled away, Hana had calmed down significantly. Karyn pulled her sleeve back down again, meeting William's dumbstruck gaze as she did so.

"William, before you speak to the grand admiral, I need to report something to him. Wait out here for one more minute, will you? Hana, go back to the living room."

Sniff. "Okay. Thanks, Karyn. I needed that."

William didn't respond at all. Not that Karyn noticed. She met the trooper's stare until he stepped aside, letting Karyn cross again into Thrawn's makeshift threshold.

Thrawn heard her approach before she opened the bathroom door. "Professor?"

"Not yet, sir. Professor Sklar is waiting in the hallway at my request. I have information for you, Grand Admiral."

Thrawn blinked. "Information you could not share with me in Sy Bisti, Commodore? I am most interested in the professor's testimony."

"No, sir. I have evidence on my person that I don't want him to see." Karyn showed Thrawn the vial and partial label. She summarized her most recent adventure in the city with emphasis on her time at the university.

"I see. And you found the vial in what location?"

"The guest refresher, sir."

Twitch. He hadn't expected that. Before Karyn could comment further, Thrawn pulled a commlink out of his pocket and told two of his troopers to cease their search. Turning back to Karyn, he instructed her to "take this evidence to Lieutenant Weylen. Ask him to confirm the vial's contents and test the whole surface area for forensic evidence. He is to report to me when he has both sets of results. Not before. After that, wait in either the kitchen or living room until I call you back. I assume you have a preference."

She did? "Yes, sir. One last question, if I may." Thrawn nodded. "Your second interview with Miss Faro. What was the topic of discussion in its final moments?"

He did not respond right away. Instead, Thrawn's eyes searched Karyn's, their red glow brighter than before. It was like gazing into the core of an aging star, transfixing and blinding all at once. Karyn maintained eye contact, refusing to back down. "You returned before I was finished with your sibling. That is what led you to visit the guest refresher."

"Yes, sir. My question, please."

Thrawn blinked, granting Karyn reprieve. "The subject was… irrelevant to the investigation at hand. Miss Faro has a unique talent for wandering off topic. She is unlike you in many ways." Thrawn straightened in his seat. "You are dismissed, Commodore. Call the professor in."

"Yes, sir." Why did this surprise her anymore? For all of Thrawn's talent in asking questions, he was downright lousy at answering him. Commander Vanto once told Karyn that a simple question about rain had trapped him in a fifteen minute loop with Thrawn, a loop that ended with Vanto's question unresolved.

Of course, this was before Vanto... no. No time for that now. Karyn had more important things to do at the moment

So Karyn hid the evidence once again and hailed William from the bedroom doorway. "Your turn."

William paled. "Any last minute tips?"

"Stay on topic. Answer his questions. Tell the truth." She stood aside so William could slip past. He kept his hands clasped together in front of him as he entered Thrawn's interrogation chamber.

"Professor Sklar. Sit."

William disappeared from Karyn's sight. "You… you like that chair, huh?"

"I do. Let us begin, shall we?"

Karyn couldn't stay here. She moved with purpose to the kitchen, stopping in the doorway to the dining room. She waited for Lieutenant Weylen to finish fiddling with a droid before catching his attention.

He groaned. "What do you want… Commodore?"

Conscious of eavesdroppers, Karyn kept her message short. "I bring you materials from Grand Admiral Thrawn. He wants them tested for chemical traces and forensic evidence. Report to him when you have both tests complete and not a second before."

She dropped the evidence into his outstretched hand. His eyes widened when he realized what the items were. "Wait. Isn't this the-"

"That is what your tests are meant to confirm, Lieutenant. You have your orders." Karyn looked past him at the droid he'd been using earlier. It appeared to be scanning the shards of transparisteel. "A reconstruction model?"

"Yes! It has taken _hours_ to get it calibrated exactly right. I forgot how hard these things were to use. Handheld software can detect the presence of poison, but don't receive any data on amount, hence the droid. It puts the broken wineglass back together and scans as if it was whole again, wine and all. Early versions of this were able to tell us a lot, but the margin of error on concentration in different spots was high." Lieutenant Weylen shrugged. "I fail to see how that matters, but your admiral's hung up on it."

It mattered a great deal, actually. Depending on the relative concentration on the glass's inner surface versus in the wine, that could tell the investigation whether poison had been applied to an empty glass or poured into the liquid. Such results could change not only the timeline of the assassination attempt, but the culprit as well.

And yet something wasn't right. Something about this whole setup ate at Karyn more than she cared to reveal. "I leave you to it, then. Lieutenant."

"Commodore."

For the first time since agreeing to assist the investigation, Karyn stepped into the living room. On her entrance, the room went silent. She took her seat in a chair opposite the couch. Karyn now sat among Hana and Hayleen, with the Sklar's forming a cluster on the side of the room closest to the kitchen. Only Brendyn met her eyes, and that was so he could silently plead with her.

Hayleen cleared her throat. "Sweetheart, you've avoided us all afternoon. What brings you back here now? The investigation's not over, is it?"

"I have completed all the tasks Grand Admiral Thrawn requires of me at this time. As he said earlier, he intends to question me about the case last. I am to wait among you until his time with William is finished."

"Ah. Welcome back to the peanut gallery, then. Where no one tells you anything and your only source of information is when that lieutenant in the kitchen starts shouting curse words. I get the impression he doesn't know much himself though, so it's not a great source." Brendyn's eyes didn't change, but his mouth switched to a manic grin. The combination was vaguely disconcerting. "How are we supposed to guess the mystery ahead of time if no one gives us any clues? The concluding monologue is going to feel very underserved later." His next words were spoken in an abysmal impression of Thrawn's voice. "'Elementary, my dear Commodore. You see-'"

"This isn't a kriffing holodrama, Brendyn!" Meg snapped, voice cracking. "That admiral might actually suspect one of us."

"Why would he do that?"

"Well, he's not letting up on us, is he? He had you in questioning for almost two hours! I doubt you were talking about the weather-"

"That did come up, actually."

"-and who knows how long Will is going to take?" She crossed her arms, averting everyone else's gaze. "I hope he's okay."

"Hey," Greg whispered, voice barely audible from where Karyn sat. "He will be. We all were, right? This is just something we all have to do our part with and get through together. Then when everything is sorted, we can celebrate Willie's wedding in peace." He put his arm around his daughter. She flinched as he did so.

"Yeah! It won't be long now. The admiral's smart. And I _love_ your bridesmaid's dress, Meg! You're gonna look so pretty in two days. The color is perfect for your eyes." Hana gasped. "Wait, did I ever show you all Karyn's dress? It's not another bridesmaid dress. It's different. I bought it way before I knew she would come, and it's this _perfect_ shade of emerald green. Just like Will's eyes! I hope it fits. Karyn, can you try it on later? When all the troopers leave, I mean?"

Karyn nodded, barely listening. Her eyes were still on Meg. The teen's combative stance from before had disappeared. Now, she seemed to shrink under Karyn's scrutiny, folding into herself and her father as much as possible.

But why? Karyn had seen Meg with Thrawn earlier. Thrawn had mostly let Meg speak on her own terms, not pressing her much at all. More importantly, she'd seemed fine in the interview all the way up until Karyn's entrance. It hadn't seemed that odd at the time, but knowing what Karyn did now, she could see details coming together. Coming together in a way no one would be thrilled about.

"_I'm allowed to leave the room, right?"_

"_Why do you ask?"_

"_I… need to use the refresher."_

"_The guest refresher in this house has no windows. She won't escape from there."_

Meg herself hadn't wanted to escape from the investigation. But something did indeed escape before any investigators showed up. Something vital to determining the true course of events. A piece of evidence.

Which piece? Well, flip to later: _While Karyn was searching for a brush in the sink cabinet, her eyes landed on a scrap of torn flimsi someone had discarded on the floor. It was a… chemical formula? _

_As she stepped back, her foot hit the refresher's disposal bin ever so slightly, causing the clink of glass to take to the air. Karyn stripped [tissues] away one by one to reveal a chemical vial. Seal broken, label removed._

In that moment, Meg locked eyes with Karyn. She watched with idle curiosity as each breath constricted in Meg's lungs, causing her shoulders to convulse. Karyn didn't move, just waited patiently for Meg to abandon her last attempt at stoicism. For a minute, the two were in stalemate. Karyn advanced. Leaning back in her seat and ensuring she still held Meg's gaze, she raised a single eyebrow. _Well?_

Meg burst into tears. The wails were ear piercing. Liza reacted first. "Meg, honey! Honey, it's going to be okay. I know this process is traumatic for you, but we're going to get through this together. Just like family always does."

Hayleen rushed over as well. She knelt down in front of Meg, cooing in low tones. One hand rested on Meg's knee, the other combed through the teen's wavy hair. "That's right, dear. Your family is here, bigger than it ever was before. Your new sister, Karyn? She was the smartest in her class at the Imperial Academy. If anyone can get to the bottom of this, she can. Good thing the admiral asked for her help, huh?" That only made the wailing worse.

"See, what did I tell you? An investigation like this is no place for children!" Liza protested, turning her anger once again towards the trooper supervising them. "My family is innocent. Let us out at once!"

"Lady, it is _not _up to me. My orders are to keep the house secure until the investigation is over. Those orders have not changed in the past... half hour." The trooper was just plain done with Liza at this point. "Don't like it? Talk to the grand admiral."

"How is he the one in charge, anyway? He was a victim of this crime! Since when is it appropriate for victims to investigate their own cases?"

"Mom, Mom. Hey." Brendyn caught Liza's attention. "Man don't give two whits what's appropriate. He roped his off duty second into investigating with him- investigate her own family, mind you- then left her in a room with the _suspects _when her use to him expired. In whose mind is that appropriate?"

"I'm sitting right here," Karyn reminded everyone. She turned to the trooper. "Thank you for your continued service, trooper. I know tensions can run high in times like these."

"It's nothing, ma'am. Just doing my duty."

Liza scoffed. Meg, for her part, quieted down. Tears still streaked down her face, but her mouth was screwed shut. Hayleen smiled, pat the teen on the head, and promised she was here for Meg as she walked away. Greg looked down at his daughter, giving her a reassuring smile.

All these displays of affection. How many of them were genuine? Who was genuinely seeking to comfort Meg, and who just wanted her silence? Liza had been awfully quick to explain away Meg's tears, and Greg's grip on Meg's arm remained rather tight.

And Hayleen… Hayleen was fine. Karyn had seen her mother approach Hana the same way a thousand times before. It made sense that Hayleen saw Meg as a third daughter now, difficult as that would make the situation later. Surely there was nothing different about this time. Right?

William was right. This whole experience was miserable. Karyn couldn't say what she knew. Not now. Her only relief would come once she saw Thrawn again and told him of her discoveries. Part of her suspected he knew everything already at times, but he always seemed to appreciate her reports. That made her feel appreciated as well.

Karyn stood by her promise to hold Thrawn's life above family ties, but was it too much to ask he be the one to direct arrests later? She was not inclined to take the lead on this mission.

Brendyn turned to Karyn, expression fully serious for the first time since that morning. "I didn't mean for it to sound like I'm blaming you for anything. I'm sorry your admiral did this to you, Karyn. He must be a real pain to work for."

Karyn shook her head. "Grand Admiral Thrawn is the best commander I have ever had. The Imperial Navy is blessed to have him."

"That doesn't mean he isn't a pain. For all I know, your previous commanders were just uniquely worse than him. Such is the problem with relative comparison in which one lacks absolute units." Brendyn paused. "I'm guessing he's gagged you as well?"

"What?"

"Even if you did know where this investigation is headed, you aren't allowed to tell us. Right?"

Karyn nodded. "That is correct. Grand Admiral Thrawn likes to keep his cards close. He would never tip his hand unintentionally."

"That's okay, Karyn. We don't want you to lose your job," Hana interjected.

"Yeah. Or the air in your lungs."

"That is Lord Vader's thing." _Very glad he is not on the Chimaera anymore. _"Grand Admiral Thrawn doesn't choke people."

"Really? He looked pretty close to it in my interview."

At that moment, a trooper came in from the hallway. "Commodore Faro. The grand admiral requires you."

"Now?" Meg croaked. "Will isn't back yet."

The trooper nodded. "Now. Commodore?"

Karyn stood. She didn't meet anyone's eyes as she made her way to the hall. The last thing she heard from the living room was Brendyn saying, "watch them tag team Will. That poor guy."

When Karyn returned to Thrawn, she caught William mid sentence. "...wish you could have just asked me first. I have proof that can settle this once and for all." He whipped out his commlink. "Inspector Brekker is required to perform random inspections of all my correspondence. In compliance with this mandate, I set it so my every comm call gets recorded. I find the measure excessive, but it's not like anyone asked me. Here goes this morning, with Hana."

"Thank you, Professor, but one thing before you press play." Thrawn turned to face Karyn in the doorway. "You may enter, Commodore."

William stared as Karyn took her place at Thrawn's side. "Um… Karyn? How long have you been standing there?"

"Irrelevant. Professor, you may present your evidence."

Now he was hesitant. "Does Karyn have to listen as well, sir? Some of what Hana mentions on this call is… intimate. I don't mind getting it over with for the investigation, but her sister doesn't need to know that stuff."

"Is it worse than what your siblings know already?" Karyn asked. "If not, I fail to see the problem here."

"I mean… I guess not." William sighed, shoulders caving inward. He pressed a button on his commlink and waited for the playback to begin.

The greeting was fairly standard. In typical Hana fashion, the call took a solid minute to reach anything of it finally did…

"_So why the call? Do you and Hayleen still want us to come over this morning?"_

"_Of course we do! We just might have to set up extra spots at the table, that's all."_

"_Hana, your table seats eight. We'll be fine."_

"_But Karyn's home too now! She surprised me last night. Amazing, right?"_

"_Wait. Your sister?"_

"_Yeah! The navy gave her a week of shore leave so she can see me get married. Isn't that great? She's gonna walk me down the aisle and toast us at the reception and meet you for the first time ever! All these years, and you finally get to meet her in just two hours! You'll love her, Will. You're both super smart. I bet you'll be great friends… oh yeah!"_

"_What is it, Hana?"_

"_I can't help you move anymore, Will. Sorry! The day after our wedding, Karyn wants to visit the historical archives downtown. She's such a genius. I just know she can figure out who stole my dad's file. And she's a big deal in the military, so the stormtroopers will _have_ to let her in." Hana hummed. "She's a commodore now, by the way. I bet this time next year, Karyn will be a full fledged admiral. Just like her- ooh, I love this dress! I think I'll wear this one today." Sound of ruffling clothes. "Remember the last time I wore this, Will?"_

_A sigh. "I can't see the dress, Hana. You're not on holo."_

"_Oh right. It's the one I wore under my robes the day of graduation. The day you proposed to me too! I loved that night. Your mom's old ring is perfect for us. And you were so sweet in bed afterwards. But why don't you go down on me more often?"_

"Yeah, this part," William interrupted, pausing the playback. "The relevant part was earlier. Hana doesn't mention you at all, sir. We don't have to listen to the rest."

"How can I be sure Miss Faro doesn't remember me at a later point unless I hear the whole call? Play the whole thing, Professor."

William complied, avoiding Karyn's gaze as he did so. _"I… didn't know you wanted me to. Usually you're the one who goes down before I can say anything."_

"_Yeah, I suck you off all the time! It's not fair." One could practically hear Hana pouting. Then her mood changed, and she crooned. "You can come inside me once we're married, you know. We'll start making babies as soon as you're ready. I hope our kids get your eyes, Will. Yours are so pretty."_

"_Brown eyes are the dominant gene, so I doubt it. But that's okay. Your eyes are just as beautiful. Our kids would be blessed to have your looks."_

"_Awwww, thanks Will. I love you so much!"_

"_Love you too, Hana. Hey, I need to go fetch Brendyn. He should be done with his lab tests by now, and I need his help gathering some things. My dad will pick us up from the university and we'll meet everyone at your house. Sound good?"_

"_Mmhm! See you in a bit. Bye, Will!"_

"_Bye." _End of call.

Yeah, Karyn did not need to know all of that. Thrawn, however, took it in stride. "Best of luck in your conception efforts, Professor. Thank you for settling the issue for me. Apologies I shocked your family so much at brunch."

"It's not your fault, sir. Hana can be... easily distracted."

"To summarize your morning: you woke up in your apartment, took a call from your fiancee, met with your brother in the laboratory-"

"Where he had nothing fatal in his possession," William added, an insistent edge to his voice. "Brendyn told me every worker who caught normaxicane poisoning has made a full recovery, even the ones who didn't seek medical help. The average sick time was five nights."

"Days," Thrawn corrected. "Your brother claimed the recovery time of normaxicane was five days."

"...Fine. Five days." William dismissed the distinction. "What does that change?"

Thrawn didn't continue immediately. "After meeting your brother, you helped him put away the last of his materials. You were with him the whole time in the laboratory and noticed nothing suspicious."

"Nothing at all. Brendyn left the storeroom with me right behind him. He walked off with my credits for the bakery while I got Hana the wine glasses she loves so much. Brendyn and I met back up in front of the university where Dad loaded us into his speeder. Mom and Meg were already with him. Everyone was behaving normally. None of us had any interest in killing you, sir. We didn't even know you were here."

"Continuing on. You arrived in this house with the rest of your family. When everyone else entered the house, you remained outside for a short period of time."

"Yes, with Karyn." William nodded in her direction. "We talked some before taking the wine glasses in."

"What did you talk about, Professor?"

"How long Karyn will be home, our jobs, why I proposed to Hana, getting Kane Faro admitted to the Hall of Heroes... Karyn can confirm this as well, sir."

"Well, Commodore? How long did you tell the professor you would remain on Kohmbra?"

What had Karyn said exactly? Oh, right. "Five more nights, sir."

"I see." Thrawn stewed on that for a moment. William and Karyn both waited in silence for him to speak again. "Thank you for your time, Professor. You may wait among your relatives."

William stood, nearly dropping his glasses as he did. "Thank you, sir. I hope… I hope you realize no one in this house wanted to assassinate you. Not one of us would ever think of doing that." With those parting words, he left.

Thrawn waited for the master bedroom door to close before he spoke. "The professor is right, you know."

"Sir?"

"Of the suspects in this case, there exists an inverse relationship between those with a motive to kill me and those with the means to do so. That is because this investigation was launched on a fallacy. A false premise I am ashamed to have followed initially. So tell me, Commodore." He turned his full gaze on Karyn. "I suspect the lieutenant has already informed you of the instrument into which fadacine was applied. Surely you comprehend the implications of such an act. Who in this house poured from the vial you so fortunately found?"

Karyn frowned. "Meg Sklar, sir. She fancies herself an insurgent, and she is the one who hid the vial in the guest refresher. She did so before you or the lieutenant arrived under the supervision of a trooper listening from the hallway."

"All that makes Miss Sklar is involved, Commodore. We have not yet proved if her actions amount to anything more. That task is one for the lieutenant to complete." Thrawn leaned back, fingers in a steeple position. "We must wait for him."

"Was there anything you wanted to ask me about regarding the case, sir?"

"You have answered most of my questions already, Commodore. The rest relate only partially to the case at hand."

"What are they, sir?"

"This… incident at the Kohmbran historical archives. What do you suspect a perpetrator would gain by stealing sixteen year old records?"

Karyn sighed. He felt her jaw clenching and had to work consciously to undo the process. "Whoever it was expects to catch the Empire in a lie, I expect. Imperial support on Kohmbra has remained strong ever since the end of the Clone Wars. If a rebel wished to diminish that support, one way would be to challenge a core tenement under which the Empire was founded. Do so in a way that involves Kohmbran citizens personally."

"Your thinking assumes the perpetrator would wish to expose their findings to the Kohmbran public; however, the break in is a week past. Why the delay, Commodore?"

"..." That was a good point. "I don't know, sir. It was just a theory. I haven't seen the site of the incident myself."

"Not yet." Thrawn reminded her. He was about to say something more when Lieutenant Weylen burst through the door with completely unearned swagger.

"Finally have the results of those tests, Grand Admiral sir!" He flashed his datapad in the pair's faces. "That vial you sent me definitely had the poison in it. As for the prints, there were three sets on the vial itself, one on the underside of the label. Miss Meg Sklar is the one who removed the label from its vial."

"We established that," Thrawn replied coolly. "To whom do the three prints on the vial belong, Lieutenant?"

Lieutenant Weylen gulped. "William, Brendyn, and Meg Sklar. Brendyn appears to have gripped the vial like so," he held his thumb and index finger in a pinching position, as if examining a test tube, "William held the vial in a closed fist," he demonstrated, "with a partial thumbprint on the broken seal, and Meg's are all over the place in no one position."

Thrawn nodded, impassive. "I see. And the reconstruction, Lieutenant? Have you narrowed the poison concentration measurements to an acceptable margin?"

"Well, the error margin is lower now. I don't know what you find acceptable, sir."

"Show me." Thrawn took the datapad from Lieutenant Weylen. His eyes showed no emotion as he examined the results. He handed the datapad to Karyn when he was finished.

She scrolled through the results quickly. Her eyes widened. She felt like the breath had been knocked out of her. How could she be so oblivious?

Lieutenant Weylen, on the other hand, was just ready to be done with things. "Well, sir? Commodore?"

Karyn handed the datapad back to Thrawn. "So that's how it is."

* * *

**A/N's:** **Here it is. The end of the investigation. Next chapter is the confrontation, also known as the ten-way screaming match. That should be fun to write. Very dramatic. Especially since you all now (pretty much) know who the culprits are.**

**But I cannot tell you how much FUN I've had with this fic. It's been a while since I've been so excited to update. This fic is an amalgamation of so many things that I love, and I'm so grateful I get to share it with the world. Also, coronavirus quarantine gives me plenty of time to write, so expect the fic's climax chapter relatively soon. Until next time!**


	8. The Confrontation

Master of the House

Chapter Eight: The Confrontation

Karyn's nerves at the current juncture were completely unwarranted. Compared to situations she'd faced recently on the _Chimaera_, this mission was a walk in the park. Follow Thrawn and Lieutenant Weylen into the living room, assist in the confrontation of a dangerous criminal, and direct the flow of an emotional fallout that ensues.

It was that last order that gave her pause. She knew any result in this case would lead to outbursts, but the approach Thrawn had chosen relied on emotions boiling over to the extreme. Maybe Karyn could have kept a cool head if the suspects were all strangers, but with her family in the mix? Was it part of his plan for her to lose control as well? It better not be. Karyn didn't know which would be worse: if she kept her head and hurt blood relatives with her coldness or if she became too emotional and Thrawn thought less of her. Both prospects terrified her.

Terrified her almost as much as the brush with death that had occurred in her own home. This house had been a cradle of safety for Karyn's whole life. Assassination attempts didn't _happen _here. Danger lived outside the building's walls, not within them.

But that's what happens when one admits criminals through the front door.

Lieutenant Weylen crossed the threshold into the living room first, followed by Thrawn next and Karyn last. They flanked Thrawn on each side while the ten troopers assigned to the case blocked all exits from the room. Everyone seated went silent simultaneously.

Well, everyone except Hana. Seated once again in William's lap, she was surrounded by Sklars on all sides. She'd been laughing at one of William's jokes, face buried in his chest as she did. The sight made Karyn sick.

William cleared his throat, nudging Hana so she'd notice the new arrivals. She looked up, sound dying on her lips. Unlike those around her, her expression indicated curiosity more than anything.

Lieutenant Weylen spoke first. "This investigation, thanks to the generous assistance of Grand Admiral Thrawn and Commodore Faro, has been blessed to achieve rapid and conclusive results. This case is… completely clear to me. I see no room for misinterpretation of the facts. As I remain the nominal head of the investigation, allow me to formally and _voluntarily_ cede the floor to Grand Admiral Thrawn, who wishes to explain the investigation's findings before making an arrest despite no legal requirement he do so."

"Thank you, Lieutenant." Thrawn took over, looking all seven suspects in the eye before beginning. "Before I deliver my investigation's results, I wish to clear the air on a near-fatal misconception that has plagued this case from its beginning. Madame Sklar."

"Yes?"

"Your assessment that no one in your family could have plotted my demise due to their lack of prior knowledge regarding my presence? It is accurate."

Liza blinked, incredulous. "You admit it?"

"I do. In my selfishness, I originally believed that because I was the one who ingested the lethal poison that it was for myself the poison was always meant. I am now better informed." He turned to Karyn. "I hope you can forgive me for my previous lack of concern towards the attempt on your life, Commodore."

Gasps. Whispers. Hayleen clutched a hand to her chest. "To… towards Karyn, sir?"

Meg shook her head, back hunched over. "No…"

"But that's impossible!" Hana protested. "Who would want to hurt Karyn? We're all family here."

"That makes the crime tragic, but not impossible. From the minute the investigation located the true source of poison, the real target of the attack was clear. Lieutenant?"

"Right." Lieutenant pulled up a holographic display on his datapad. It was-

"A wine glass."

"The star design, it's-"

"The one Karyn broke." Brendyn noted, fascinated by the display. "These readings on the inner cup… are they from the poison?"

"Indeed they are, Mr. Sklar. The poisoner poured their liquid weapon from its vial into this instrument under the impression the commodore would drink from it. No party present had any reason to believe I would drink from this cup, but I was curious about the wine, so the commodore offered me a taste. I suffered the toxin's effects before Commodore Faro could drink for herself, thereby foiling the poisoner's plot."

"Well, this changes everything!" Greg declared. "When he first showed up, sir, the lieutenant said us not knowing about your arrival ahead of time meant the attack wasn't planned. Now you're claiming it was?"

"No, the core of the lieutenant's original statement holds. He repeated it to me as saying no one had more than a few hours to premeditate. That fact remains true." Thrawn smirked. "I suppose one could say this attack was planned. But certainly not well."

"Isn't that a good thing?" Brendyn asked. "If the murder wasn't well thought out, it had a lower probability of actually killing its target."

"I suppose that depends on your perspective, Mr. Sklar. The poisoner wouldn't consider such circumstances a good set, now would they?" Thrawn shifted gears. "Because I fell victim to the attack and not the commodore, anyone who showed awareness of the assassin's true target made for a natural suspect."

Hana was shaken. "But… but no one had any idea Karyn was in danger! Nobody here would ever want Karyn to die. Oh, Karyn!"

Hana stood to embrace her sister, but Karyn shook her head. "Not now," she mouthed. Talk first, hug nodded, considered sitting back down, then stepped aside so William and Brendyn could see. She leaned against the wall for support.

Thrawn waited for the exchange to play out before he continued. "...Miss Sklar. Our discussion this afternoon struck me as odd for several reasons. I shall start with the less obvious point. You see, I have been told numerous times before that my demeanor can be intimidating, yet you carried yourself remarkably well for the length of your interview. That is, up until the very end when Commodore Faro returned. Why is that?"

Meg's eyes flickered from Thrawn to Karyn, flinching when they met Karyn's gaze. "We were discussing Hana… sir. I didn't, um, think Karyn would like what I had to say about her sister."

Hana tilted her head. "Why, what was it?" She gasped. "It wasn't about Empire Day when I let you have wine, was it? I forgot you were too young, okay?"

"The details of the conversation at that point are irrelevant. The important part was Miss Sklar's reaction. Even now, Miss Sklar, you cannot meet the commodore's eyes without feeling guilt."

"Nonsense! What does my daughter have to be guilty for?"

"Ask your daughter, Madame. See if she can deny it."

Liza evaluated Meg's flickering form, then gulped. "Honey?"

Meg wrapped her arms around herself, eyes firmly on the floor. "It's not like that. I didn't poison anyone. Before Karyn showed up, I thought she was just some Imperial bitch. I don't… support what the Empire does to people in the Outer Rim. They're oppressors and slavers out there. But… it's so much easier to hate on someone when you don't have to meet them. Whenever Karyn was loving on Hana or Mrs. Faro was telling stories about her as a kid… I realized just how sad they would be if she was gone. They wouldn't just miss her money. They would miss_ her_." She choked up. "And that… that… Unh!"

Thrawn watched Meg break down, an unknowable glint to his eye. "You could never be a rebel, Miss Sklar. Whatever fuels your fascination with insurgency, I suggest you abandon it." He glanced at her other relatives, waiting to see if any of them would react. But aside from Liza rubbing Meg furiously on the back, none of them moved. He continued his advance. "Now, your prints were found on the vial containing poison. Would you care to offer an explanation as to how they got there, Miss Sklar?"

Her hands buried themselves in her hair, grip tightening until some of the strands snapped off their roots. "I-I didn't… poison her… er, you. I-I just," she hiccuped, "I just found the vial when you were on the floor. Everyone was" _hck!_ "screaming. I couldn't understand the label, but I knew… knew it wasn't anything good. Karyn was yelling about poison, I panicked! So I took the vial with me. But then all the stormtroopers showed up, and I… I thought they would search me! So I" _hck! _"hid it. I'm sorry, Mom!"

"Oh, honey…" Liza embraced her daughter, glaring at Thrawn as she did so. "My daughter is a child. You can't possibly think a child is capable of something this heinous!"

Thrawn turned to Karyn. He asked her a quick question. "Commodore. Is rebel Commander Bridger older or younger than this girl?"

"Younger, sir. He is sixteen while she is seventeen."

"Hm. I am afraid my experience runs contrary to your claim, Madame Sklar. It is perfectly reasonable for this investigation to consider your daughter on equal footing with other suspects."

"Wait, go back a minute." William spoke for the first time. "How did you know Meg's prints were on the vial? No one in the investigation ever took our prints."

Lieutenant Weylen looked at William like he was stupid. "They're in the citizen database with the rest of your information. The Empire collects them when you obtain your identification card. Only annoying thing was that the grand admiral and commodore's prints were in the military database while everyone else's were in the Kohmbran civilian one. It was back and forth all afternoon."

"Love you too, Empire!" Brendyn smiled. "You didn't know that, Will?"

"No. That's… news to me."

Thrawn waited to see if William would say more. He did not. "That is what you claim regarding your relationship to the murder weapon, Miss Sklar. It is true you attempted to hide evidence from the investigation's eyes. It does not, however, explain how you know the Commodore was the intended victim of the attack before the investigation confirmed it. What gave you such an impression?"

She struggled to speak. "Where the vial was. It was" _hck!_ "open already. At the bottom of the wineglass container." Meg wailed. "The seal was broken before I did anything. I didn't poison" _hck! "_anyone. But… no one ever gave you a wineglass, sir."

This was pitiful. Karyn understood the point of this exercise, but she hadn't expected it to go on for this long. Neither had Thrawn, she'd wager.

Hayleen watched Meg with a cautious eye. She was concerned for the teen, certainly, but hesitant to comfort her in the way she had before. "Is that the truth, Meg? Is hiding evidence the only thing you're responsible for?"

"Yes! Y-yes…" Meg tried to look at Karyn again, only to fail miserably. "I… none of us are murderers, okay? This is all just a tragic accident. It" _hck!_ "has to be." Meg tried to stand up. Liza's grip prevented her. She looked in the direction of her brothers as she made her apologies. "I'm sorry, Karyn. Hana. Mrs. Faro..."

"Don't apologize to me, dear. Apologize to the Grand Admiral. He's the one who's suffered today."

"Meg!" Hana exclaimed. "I really want to believe in you, but… why would you do this? Why steal evidence if you're innocent?"

"That's what I want to know." Greg shook his head. "This is insanity. When we get home, young lady, you are going to explain to me what this admiral means by 'fascination with insurgency'! You know I don't let radicals live in my house."

"I suppose those exact words are true," Thrawn mused. "As for Miss Faro's question, Miss Sklar will answer it in a moment. Before she does, I would like Miss Sklar to know that I suspected her involvement from the moment she stepped foot in front of me this afternoon."

"You did?" Meg could only whisper now.

"I did. Your shoe, Miss Sklar." Thrawn glanced toward the side of her left shoe. Meg looked down with him and gasped.

A piece of flimsi sat there, stuck to the fabric. Another part of the poison label! Meg picked it off, eyes wide as she studied the scrap.

"Hand it to the lieutenant, Miss Sklar. He will ensure the writing I noted on it is indeed a partial chemical formula."

Late to his cue, Lieutenant Weylen rushed over to collect the evidence from Meg. He held the flimsi up to the light for study. "Yup, this exactly is what you think it is. Good eye, Grand Admiral."

Thrawn walked over to Meg, ignoring Liza and Greg's alarmed glares as he got closer. He stopped roughly a half meter from Meg's face and knelt down. "The life of a criminal is not for you, Miss Sklar. Abandon your delusions while you still can. Now, you didn't just steal the vial on a whim. You removed the evidence from the crime scene because you solved the case before anyone else could even investigate. Quite impressive." Thrawn had meant that as a compliment. All it got him was a whimper. "Your actions made you the most natural suspect, but not my only one. You and I both know who's really responsible for this crime. Name the true perpetrator, and the pressure on you will subside."

Meg's throat was hoarse from sobbing, giving her wails a braying effect. She buried her face in her hands, covering her eyes so she couldn't see anyone. She shook her head. "...No."

Thrawn's eyes flashed, not that Meg could tell. "No?"

"No. Please… don't make me do it. I won't say it."

Thrawn chuckled softly as he rose back up to full height. "I see. I find it admirable you care for the true criminal so deeply, Miss Sklar. Pity they don't feel the same for you."

"What?" Meg let her hands fall to her sides. "No, that isn't true. He loves me."

"Then why does he sit silently as you suffer on his behalf? He may not have asked you to become his accomplice, but if he wasn't prepared to sacrifice you, he would have come to your aid long before now." Thrawn paused, giving the true criminal one more chance before he moved on to his next target. "Very well. Mr. Sklar?"

Both Greg and Brendyn perked up at that. "Um… which one of us?"

"The younger one."

"What?!" Brendyn launched himself to the edge of his seat. "I already told you, man! I didn't dose you. And no, that's not because I wanted to dose Karyn, because I didn't want that either! Kriff, if I wanted to dose Karyn, my chatter at brunch makes even_ less_ sense. Why would I tell my very poisoning victim everything she needs to know about the substance I'm raring to go kill her with? That's just… dumb!"

"Did I ever claim you were intelligent, Mr. Sklar?"

"First of all: ouch. That was _not_ called for and you know it. Second of all: I still don't have any reason to pull this stunt. This is the first time I've ever met Karyn. Honestly, she seems cool, obviously very smart. I guess I can see Meg's logic, but I'm not that into politics myself. I will appreciate just about anyone who can talk chemistry with me." Brendyn paused. "I have low standards. Maybe this is why I'm dating my lab partner. I mean, I _guess_ I could get out more..."

Karyn broke in before Brendyn could get any further off topic. "So you say. That doesn't fix the core problem for why you're a suspect in this case."

He groaned. "Is this about my morning in the lab? Like I told you two, I wasn't working with anything lethal. Not only that, but everything I used this morning got returned to its proper place in the storeroom. That's where you went after bending an ear to my rants, right Karyn? To the university? You met with Dr…. Sobotko, I bet? The balding professor who wasn't thrilled to see you? His class meets around the time you would have been there. Anyway, I'm confident he showed you everything. I did not bring any poison to this family gathering. I'm not that stupid, okay?"

"You bring a..._ unique_ perspective to this case, Mr. Sklar. Tell me: what is it you find so 'stupid' about the poisoning plot?"

"...I still feel like you're insulting me, but sure. Why not." Brendyn crossed his arms and leaned back, staring Thrawn straight in the eye. "It's exactly as you demonstrated, sir. Poisoning some food or drink is one thing. It's easy, at least theoretically. Making sure the right person ingests the poison? Quite harder. And aside from you- who none of us knew would be present- all of us are either close relatives or about to become that way. What if the killer accidentally took out their sibling, or their parent, or their wife? The error potential on this scheme is waaaaaaay high. What guarantee did the killer even have that Karyn would drink from the stars glass, for example? That was the one that caught Hana's eye when she found them in a store. What besides circumstance stopped her from being the one to take a floordive?"

Hana gasped, hand covering her mouth. "Now _I_ could have died? Is no one safe in this house?!"

The culprit had thought of this, at least. Not that Karyn could point it out now, but the evidence was clear in retrospect: _"Hearts for 'his sweetheart'," [Meg] filled one glass on the counter nearly to the brim, "and stars for the 'explorer of the galaxy'." The second glass received considerably less wine than the first._

"Brendyn is right. I don't know why anyone in this house would attack Karyn to begin with, let alone in a way that could so easily harm the wrong person. It's too much risk," Greg argued.

"Which is one of the myriad reasons you are not a suspect, Mr. Sklar the elder. You've dedicated your entire career to minimizing the risk people take in their daily lives. The premise of hatching a rash scheme offends you to the core. And let me remind you, Mr. Sklar the younger, this plot was dreamt up in haste. Borne of… desperation, I suspect. Desperation causes people to take unnecessary risks, even if those risks include the life of a loved one," Thrawn glanced at Hana, then back at Brendyn "or, in your case, their trust."

"...But no one's betrayed my trust, here. Meg lied today, sure, but not specifically to me." Brendyn looked to his sister, puzzled. She didn't meet his eyes. "Anyway, it's like I told you. Everything I used today in the lab I put away. I left the laboratory completely empty handed. Will can attest to this. He came in to talk to me while I was cleaning up, remember? I told you that already." Thrawn didn't react, so he elaborated. "I yelled at him for not wearing any safety gear, he claimed he didn't need it because my experiments were over, we chatted about normaxicane recovery rates for a bit, he followed me into the storeroom as I put away the last of my things… is any of this ringing a bell? Please nod." Thrawn did not. "Well, we left the place with him right behind me. He knows I didn't have anything. Right, Will?"

Will didn't respond right away. "...Yeah. I said the same thing. In my interrogation, I mean."

Brendyn inspected his brother for a second, one hand on Will's shoulder. "You okay, dude? You seem a little out of it. This is the climax of the mystery, man. Now is not the time to space out."

Thrawn waited for Brendyn to come back to him before he continued to speak. "Turn your thinking around, Mr. Sklar. In truth, you are quite close to understanding the exact nature of the offense committed towards you."

"Again: what offense? I mean, yeah, you've insulted me a few times today. I won't lie, it does sting a bit, but…" Brendyn paused to consider. "What do you mean 'turn my thinking around'? If I left the university storeroom without any vials, but a vial came into this house anyway… well, we know it wasn't the one Dad keeps in his office. He didn't go to the office today; moreover, he isn't a suspect. So where…" Brendyn literally looked over his shoulder, pantomiming what he should have done in the storeroom that morning. When he turned back to face the rest of the room, his expression was slack in shock. He coughed. "No. No... No! That's just crazy!"

"Is it, now?"

"Yeah, it's nuts! Way out of character. Dude doesn't have it in him to kill a pest, let alone his sister-in-law!"

Hana was starting to freak out. "What's going on? I don't understand. Who doesn't have it in him to do what?"

Brendyn turned to face Hana. He sighed, lowering his gaze as he did so. "Hana, the grand admiral? He thinks Will did it."

"What?!" Hana's eyes ignited. First with surprise, then with outrage. She took a few steps toward Thrawn, oblivious to the stormtroopers shifting into position all around her. Karyn held up a hand to steady them. "You can't be serious. Will is the love of my life! If he loves me and wants to marry me, that means he loves my family as well. Hurting Karyn would be like hurting Brendyn or Meg to him: out of the question!"

"I believe we have had a similar conversation already, Miss Faro. I don't find purely emotional rationales all that compelling. I never have. Furthermore, I have yet to make any statement in which I name the young professor. That both of your betrothed's siblings reached the same conclusion after drawing from their own experiences is not the same as an accusation from myself… concerning as it may be."

Brendyn rejected that logic immediately. "Oh, like hell you haven't accused Will. You've been steering this conversation in that direction this whole time, haven't you? You led Meg and I blind by the nose until we said the things you wanted. That is _not_ the same thing as us 'reaching the same conclusions'. Conclusions, by nature, ought to be reached independently to ensure their veracity. This test is rigged."

Heat was rising in the room. Karyn's role in the mission was coming up soon. She could only hope she was ready when her cue came. Whatever form it may take.

"I led you to your epiphany, that much is true. Can you deny the truth of the conclusion you drew only seconds ago?"

Brendyn shrugged. "Well, I can't prove it. And since I don't have any actual proof, I choose to believe my brother. I've known Will my whole life. This line of questioning is absurd. Right, Meg?"

The investigation did possess proof, but it was too early to show it. Thrawn didn't want to make any arrests until he had all the pieces in place. One thing still wasn't lining up at the moment.

Meg did not respond to Brendyn's prompting. But Thrawn did. "Your sister believed her conclusions sincerely enough to put her own freedom at risk and interfere with an Imperial investigation. I acknowledge that family ties may run deep, but they cannot be allowed to obscure the truth. And the truth is thus: someone used this intimate family setting as a venue for assassination. They sought the death of Commodore Faro and nearly received my own instead."

Hayleen's face fell as she considered her options. "Were you really that close to dying, sir? You certainly recovered fast."

"The doctor was clear: had help arrived but a minute later, I may not have recovered as swiftly as I did… or at all. The poison had yet to burn through any of my internal organs, you see. As such, I only experienced severe stomach pain, not hemorrhaging nor internal bleeding." Thrawn paused for effect. "The poison in question does not stop burning through organs once it escapes the stomach. It will eat any flesh in its path, killing its victim in a matter of hours should they not receive medical help. The whole time before death, the victim is subjected to the sensation of a hellish fire consuming them from within. A sensation I would wish on only my most insidious enemies. The use of this particular poison here was not only cowardly, but excessively cruel. Have I answered your question, Madame Faro?"

White as a sheet, she could only nod. If Hayleen hadn't already been seated, she might well have fallen to her knees. Her eyes fixated on Karyn, nightmares playing out behind them. Hayleen was no stranger to imagining how her eldest daughter might die, but never had she considered such a twisted method.

Hana was losing it as well, just not as quietly. She continued to yell at Thrawn. "Will is not cruel! He's the sweetest guy I know. He would never_ ever _do that to- you're not listening to me." So she turned her sights on Karyn, eyes pleading for mercy. "Karyn, please! Will doesn't want to hurt you. He wants to be your brother. He promised me!"

Karyn held firm under Hana's gaze, though she did soften her tone a bit. "I think it's about time William speaks for himself. It's sweet that you want to defend him, Hana, but if what you're telling me is right, then he is just as capable of saying so."

Thrawn turned to William. "Well, Professor Sklar? What are your thoughts on the claims your siblings have made?"

William was watching Hana, dazed. When Thrawn addressed him, he turned first to Brendyn (who nodded encouragement) and then to Meg (who only sniffled). "I don't know what kind of story you told those two in interrogation, but it's wrong. I have never wanted to kill anyone in my life, nor do I know what I did to make Meg think I would. I wasn't trying to 'sacrifice' her earlier. I was shocked and didn't comprehend what was going on. I don't know where she got any of these ideas."

Liza agreed. "My son is about to get married! Murder is the farthest thing from his mind right now. Why would he disrupt such an important event by causing problems two days prior?"

"I agree the timing is not ideal, but it isn't as if the young professor had many options. Commodore Faro only has five nights left on this planet before she returns to Imperial service. That is a rather tight window in which to conduct an assassination."

"That's another thing." Will stepped in, bravado seeping into his voice. "Say I do hate Karyn for a minute. I don't, but… let's pretend that, for whatever reason, the very sight of her turns my vision scarlet." He paused, glancing at Thrawn. "Sorry, it's an expression. But even if I didn't like her for some reason, it's just as you said: she won't be here long. You don't think I could put my feelings aside for one week to make my wife happy? Why would I kill someone I just met and will likely meet again only a handful more times in my life? Why not just run down the clock?"

It seemed like a fair point on the surface, but Karyn was convinced Thrawn was on the right track. William's motive had to be desperation. The poisoning hadn't been a choice in his mind, but a necessity. That meant he wouldn't have had any leeway in when he took action.

But what event was giving him such anxiety? The wedding? That didn't make any sense. No, there had to be something else. Something that could spell trouble for him. And maybe there was.

"_Hana told me you want to visit the historical archives later. I'm… sorry someone stole your dad's file. I spent a lot of time with those records. I hope they surface again soon." _

"_I don't just want to see them again. I want them back where they belong. I want whoever stole them to reveal their agenda and pay for their crimes." Karyn did her best to keep her tone flat, but bitterness seeped through nonetheless. _

_William stumbled backwards. "Um… wouldn't you rather enjoy your time with Hana while you have shore leave? Your mom, too? Hana makes it sound like you're always working. I'm sure the local authorities can handle this case."_

"_I will be with Hana. She's coming with me downtown the day after her wedding. It was her idea we investigate." Karyn raised an eyebrow. "Didn't she tell you?"_

And then later, when Thrawn asked Karyn about it. Just after speaking to William, in fact: _"This… incident at the Kohmbran historical archives. What do you suspect a perpetrator would gain by stealing sixteen year old records?"_

_Karyn sighed. She felt her jaw clenching and had to work consciously to undo the process. "Whoever it was expects to catch the Empire in a lie, I expect. Imperial support on Kohmbra has remained strong ever since the end of the Clone Wars. If a rebel wished to diminish that support, one way would be to challenge a core tenement under which the Empire was founded. Do so in a way that involves Kohmbran citizens personally."_

"_Your thinking assumes the perpetrator would wish to expose their findings to the Kohmbran public; however, the break in is a week past. Why the delay, Commodore?"_

"_..." That was a good point. "I don't know, sir. It was just a theory. I haven't seen the site of the incident myself."_

"_Not yet."_

Well, that explained the delay in release. Nothing ruins a wedding day quite like the bride's family being the target of a terrorist's smear campaign. William hadn't formally joined the Faro family yet, and already he wanted to tear it apart from the inside. _Kriffing traitor, indeed._

Karyn said as much. "You couldn't run down the clock, William, because time isn't on your side. If you didn't act today, life as you know it would come to a screeching halt just three days from now."

Beat. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yeah, why three days? The wedding is in two." Brendyn looked from Karyn to WIlliam in confusion. "What happens the day after the wedding?"

Hana blinked, lost. "Karyn and I were gonna go visit the historical archives downtown and figure out who stole all the files. But what does that have to do with Will?"

Brendyn made the connection first. "Ohhhhhh. Interesting. Wrong, but very interesting."

"You're not… trying to accuse _me _of being the file thief, are you?" William raised an eyebrow up over the rims of his glasses. "I'll try not to be offended. I can see where you're coming from, Karyn, but… last I heard from the news, the break in occurred at some point between the archives' closing time at six and midnight. I spent all my time here with Hana on the evening in question."

...What? No, that can't be right. It shouldn't be possible!

Karyn looked to Hana for confirmation. She nodded. So Karyn asked, "what were the two of you doing?"

Hana had to think. "Well, Will got here around five thirty, he helped me and Mom make dinner, we ate, did the dishes, went over the final seating chart for our wedding reception… oh!" Hana turned back to William real quick. "I told you Karyn was coming, Will. She _has_ to sit next to me!" Then she continued where she left off. "Once all the planning was done, we settled down and watched a holodrama together. It finished a bit after midnight, and Will had classes to teach the next day, so he drove back to his shoebox instead of staying the night."

That fit the time frame of the break in suspiciously well. But even if Karyn said that, it wouldn't disprove anything. She doubted Hana was intentionally covering for William. If she'd known all along he was the thief, she wouldn't have asked Karyn to investigate in the first place. But if what Hana said was true and William really had nothing to do with the incident, then his actions this morning lost all their meaning.

Or did they? Karyn had initially believed Meg to be the sole culprit of the case, but really she'd been covering for her brother. What if Karyn hadn't made two distinct mistakes in this investigation, but the same one twice? Sure, she had no idea who the second party would be in this instance, but their existence remained a possibility.

Thrawn was doing a better job of keeping his emotions in check, but clearly he had similar thoughts. "You can confirm this as well, Madame Faro?"

Hayleen nodded, still spooked from earlier. "The first part, at least. I went to bed long before those two."

"And are you sure that's everything William did that evening, Hana?"

"Yes. Well… yes!" Hana nodded. Faltering, she took several steps towards Karyn until the two were at arm's length. When she reached for her sister's hand, Karyn let her take it. "I know you're scared because someone tried to kill you, but Will would never do that. He wants to be a part of this family, not ruin it. Please believe us."

That was it. Karyn's cue. Hana's hesitation had been slight, but her reassurances afterward only made it more apparent, like she was trying to convince herself as well as Karyn. And now that Hana stood willingly at her sister's side, Karyn had her right in position to begin the maneuver.

Thrawn's words echoed in Karyn's mind as she prepared herself. _"Convincing Miss Faro that her imminent husband would attempt these crimes will be a difficult and painful experience for her. But given her proximity to the young professor, it is likely she knows something crucial to exposing his true motivations, even if she is not yet aware of its significance. The second she expresses doubt in him, you must be ready to draw the details out of her. I would do it myself, but your sister is not responsive to my questioning techniques in a beneficial way. If I handle her, she is more likely to cry than confess." _

Karyn couldn't guarantee this process would be completed entirely without tears, but she had to try. With Hana, there needed to be a balance between being direct and being gentle. Time to find out if Karyn could walk it. "I want to believe that, Hana, but in order for a crime to be solved, every little detail needs to see the light of day. Only when the investigation knows the whole truth can we be sure of someone's innocence."

"And I have told this investigation the truth. Everything I know, your admiral knows too. I have held nothing back. None of us have." William directed his words at Karyn, but his gaze at Hana. He wasn't going to make this easy, was he?

Thrawn clearly had a response ready, but Karyn cut him off with an almost imperceptible shake of the head. She had a good idea of what he wanted to say and it would derail everything if he went through with it now. Hana had to be the one to speak. "Is that true, Hana?"

Hana broke her gaze with William to look Karyn in the eye. Karyn schooled herself to look interested, but not harsh. "...Yeah, of course it's true. I would never lie to you, Karyn. Especially not about things that could hurt you."

Why did Hana _have_ to be in love with the person trying to kill Karyn? With her feelings as they stood, it would be nearly impossible to convince Hana that William was anything but the man she believed him to be. Hana may love her sister, but she wouldn't just take Karyn's word that the one she wanted to marry was out for blood. What did she see in William, anyway?

...Wait a second. Karyn knew the answer to that. Hana told her last night: _ "Will is amazing. He is soooooo smart, really sweet, he always listens to me and teaches me new things about the galaxy. He's got these really thick glasses that give him a 'bookish, but still hot' look. His hair…" _Skip ahead a little._ "He always has funny history stories to tell me when I don't understand why things are like they are today. He answers all my questions and never makes me feel bad for asking them. He's super funny but thinks all his jokes suck, so he gets bashful whenever I laugh."_

Answers all her questions and never makes her feel bad for asking them. In other words, he never gave Hana the impression she wasn't intelligent. To her face, at least. But whether it was mouthing words behind her back or commenting euphemistically about calls they share, no way did WIlliam actually hold her mental prowess in high esteem.

Maybe Hana did need a few harsh words to help her see the truth. But if someone was going to bring her back to reality, it wasn't going to be Karyn. It was going to have to be William himself. Karyn just had to coax him into acting.

And to do that, she had to get William to lower his guard first. For that purpose, Karyn pretended to concede. "Perhaps I did jump to conclusions. We should have asked you about it directly, William. You just seemed so surprised by my choice to visit the archives that it stood out to me in hindsight. Hana did inform you of our plans, after all."

William's eyes widened. He hadn't been expecting this. "Yes, Hana did, but her call this morning wasn't clear, as you heard…" Hana turned towards him, alarmed, "...and that's okay. Misunderstandings happen."

"Yeah, like how she also forgot to mention the grand admiral was here as well. Just a _minor _mixup with some rather stupendous consequences." Brendyn's sarcasm played right into Karyn's scheme.

"I said I was sorry about that, okay?" Hana went on the defensive. "I thought I had mentioned it. It's just a mistake that I didn't."

"And we know that." Karyn reassured her sister before William could. She stepped a bit closer to Hana to brush some hair out of her face. "Neither myself nor Grand Admiral Thrawn blame you for anything that has occurred here today. Okay?"

Hana leaned into Karyn's touch, visibly relieved. "Okay."

"We just needed to hear what everyone knows in order to put the truth together. That is the only reason the grand admiral wanted to question you twice."

"I understand." Hana offered Karyn a small smile. "I'm glad you don't think Will is the thief anymore."

"I believe he isn't the one who physically removed the files from their rightful place in the archives a week ago. Thanks to you, I now understand that for the entire six-hour time window, William never left your side."

There it was again. The doubt. Sitting right at the front of Hana's mind was a vital piece of information, something Hana wasn't sure was important but was growing increasingly uncomfortable with not mentioning. And if Karyn could see it on Hana's face, that meant William could see it too.

He reacted precisely as Karyn expected. "Exactly. We spent all our time together. There's no way I could have done anything to aid in the archive heist. And if I'm not the thief, then I have no reason to attack anyone to cover the fact." William threw his hands outward. "Therefore I am not the poisoner."

Hana flitted back and forth from Karyn to William, sister to lover. Each time her focus shifted, she grew more and more conflicted. "You're not the one who did it, Will. I get that. But-"

"But nothing. I have done nothing wrong, here. I'm sorry all this happened, but none of it is our fault. I just want to get back to our wedding. Right, Hana?"

"I do too, but… Will! Someone _really_ wanted to hurt Karyn. They could have killed her. They nearly did kill the admiral! We have to do everything we can to help them find who did this, and you _did_-"

"And we have. We stayed put in here while they searched the house and surrounding areas. We sat for interviews. We answered Grand Admiral Thrawn's questions. What more can we do?"

"You can let your future wife finish her sentence. Is it not a galaxy-wide taboo to interrupt others, Professor?" Thrawn spoke for the first time in a while. He'd promised to leave this part of the confrontation to Karyn, but that didn't mean he couldn't help out every now and then.

William frowned. "I don't want to waste your time, sir. I know you had somewhere to be before you landed here on Kohmbra."

"I did. Attempts on my life take precedence, however. Miss Faro may speak."

"I'm telling you right now. It's really nothing. In fact, let _me_ say what I bet it is." William shifted in his seat, once again removing the commlink from his pocket. "A couple minutes into the holodrama, I got a call from another TA at the university. A friend of mine. He was doing research and needed to find something in the campus library. He knew about a time I hunkered down in there last year, so he asked me where he could locate some stuff. I did_ technically _leave Hana's side for maybe ten minutes so I could talk to him in the other room. That's it. I didn't leave the house. I didn't plot some conspiracy. The whole thing was so irrelevant that I forgot about it until just now."

Like hell he did. Hana had her suspicions this time too. "You forgot? But it was really weird. Rick called me on my comm first, remember? He wanted to talk to you on it because he thought your comm was broken. I told him it wasn't and that he should call yours instead. Why would he think that, though? You've had that same commlink for years. It's always worked fine." Now she was pouting. "And why couldn't I have said what you just did? Why is it a waste of time when I talk?"

Karyn had an idea for why they'd opted for Hana's commlink, but she couldn't come out and say it. Hana wasn't ready yet. So before William could say anything to comfort her, Karyn drew her sister's attention away, tracing the side of Hana's face with her fingertips. "It is not a waste of time when you talk, Hana. Don't ever believe that. You are right that what you describe is very strange."

"It's just because I dropped my comm earlier in the day when Rick and I were hanging out. He thought I might have broken it and I promised to check later. I would have looked into it then, but that's when Inspector Brekker got back. He had curriculum suggestions for me to discuss with him in my office." William's voice was getting sharper. "I don't see anything strange. This is all very normal."

"Oh. That's all? You didn't tell me that, Will."

"Because it wasn't important. None of this is."

"I'm trying to help my sister find who wanted to kill her! How is that not important to you?"

Brendyn had the brilliant idea of joining in at this point. "Hana, hey. I don't think that's what Will's saying, here. I think he just meant-"

"Don't tell me what he meant! I want Will to tell me himself. Why do you think my sister's life isn't important? If someone hurt Brendyn or Meg, wouldn't you want to help the Empire find who's responsible?"

Now Liza had to get involved. "Hana, honey. It's not like that at all. We've all been doing our part to-"

"No, you haven't! You've been trying to get out of here all afternoon. You thought none of your family had anything to do with this, but Meg literally stole evidence and hid it under watch from stormtroopers! And I already know you don't like Karyn, so don't lie about it. When Mom was in the hospital and Karyn was doing everything she could to get Imperial insurance to pay for her, you made it sound like she was evil to anyone who would listen!"

"That is not what I said! I just think that when a close relative is near _death_, it's common courtesy to..."

And so began the four person screaming match. Greg clearly considered weighing in, but decided at the last second it wouldn't do much good. No matter how much Brendyn or Liza tried to reassure her, Hana continued to panic. Karyn kept her hand in Hana's, but contributed nothing to the exchange.

Lieutenant Weylen pulled a whistle out of his uniform pocket. He was about to blow into it to break up the argument when Karyn stopped him. _Just a bit longer..._

Because Hana cut off every attempt William made to soothe her, her fearful rants only drove William closer and closer to the edge until finally, he snapped. "Hana, enough! I do not hate your sister, I do not want her dead, and I do not have any secrets I'm keeping from you. Can you not be an idiot for one starsforsakenday?!"

"You think I'm an idiot?" Hana had been yelling at the top of her lungs a split second ago. Now her voice was small. She retreated further into Karyn's personal space for support. "I thought I was smart for you, Will. You taught me so much."

William instantly realized his mistake. Not that it mattered. "Hana, no. I didn't mean that. Hey, don't cry. Come here."

"No…"

"Hana." He stood up, intending to approach his fiancee.

Karyn blocked his path. This time, she had no problem letting her feelings be known. "Don't you touch her."

"Why… why do you think I'm stupid? What did I do that was so bad? All I wanted to tell Karyn about was that call you had with Rick. We all know Rick! He's a good guy. He's gonna be your best man in the wedding. You two've been friends for years." She laughed through her tears. "Remember that time last fall you slept in the library together? That was so funny! You all turned over the entire place in… what? Two weeks? No, three. You only came back to your shoebox when you had the entire history section sorted out and I- wait." She stopped in her tracks, face falling. One hand crept up towards her mouth, stopping just short of her lip. Part of her wanted to block the words coming out while the other just _had_ to say them. "No, that can't be right. Rick spent those nights in the library with you. But if that's the case, why did he have to call you asking where things were? That was his question, I heard it! He asked: where are the datafiles I'm looking for? He said the place was huge, and all the historical documents had… confusing labels and… and he wasn't in the university library at all, was he?"

William sighed. He also looked like he wanted to cry. "No. He wasn't."

Thrawn hid his smirk. He sensed now wasn't the appropriate time to rejoice. "Hm. For a supposed idiot, Miss Faro saw through your deception rather quickly. Perhaps you shouldn't be so quick to dismiss her, Professor."

Brendyn didn't believe it. "But… that doesn't make any sense! Will, you had access to the historical archives for months on end, all the way until last Empire Day. If you were gonna pull a stunt like this, why wait for the least convenient time to do so?"

"Because Empire Day was over a month ago," Karyn answered for him. "His motive for stealing -Dr. Fischer's ouster- didn't exist yet."

"Ohhhhhh. Damn." What else could Brendyn say at that point?

"Dr. Fischer didn't do anything wrong. He taught his students the truth and they turned against him for it. You think the Empire cares about the truth, Hana? Because they don't. They want whatever will keep them in power and will tell any lie to make their rule seem legitimate. When the Republic declared war on the Separatists for trying to secede, they became hypocrites to their own principles of self-determination. When the war ended and the Empire forced reunification, they became something far worse.

"Initially, I didn't want to touch your father's file. I knew that taking it would cause you and Hayleen pain. But it's like Rick said: Kane Faro was an honorable soldier who fought for what was right until the very end. He doesn't deserve to live on in a lie. I did him a disservice by turning him into a propaganda piece. I distorted the historical record for personal gain, and it was up to me to fix my mistakes. I didn't know the truth at first, but when I found out… I knew I couldn't hide it."

"What are you saying? My dad died a hero!"

"I agree. He did die a hero. Just not the way the Empire said he did." William pulled a cloth out of his pocket with which to clean his glasses. He used the activity as an excuse not to look at Hana and, by extension, Karyn. "There was something strange about the casualty report the Empire let me use for my project: an extra blaster was included in the items list. It belonged to a clone, but there was no explanation for why it was included with everything else. It was a minor oddity at first, but in the context of the night's story, it only gets stranger from.

"The night of his death, Kane Faro was just another normal, if well-regarded, foot soldier in the PDF. His reputation had led him to be considered for several promotions over the course of his career, but all of them would have removed him from his wife and kids, so he never took one. Kohmbra has a strong military culture based heavily on voluntary service, so the idea of clone soldiers offended them all throughout the war. When a Jedi knight came by to supervise the closing of weapons factories in the city, Kohmbra refused his clone escort and gave him a human guide: Kane himself. So far, so good.

"At the same time on Coruscant, portions of the Jedi leadership went to then-Chancellor Palpatine's chamber to discuss the end of the war. Supposedly, the four masters all tried to assassinate the chancellor but failed, resulting in their deaths. Believing with apparently zero evidence that the attack was part of a larger Jedi coup in which all Jedi were involved, Chancellor Palpatine used the clones' unique biology to order the purge of everyone in the Jedi Order. This was, at best, an overreaction that claimed thousands of innocents' lives. The purge included children, for stars sake!

"Now back to Kane. When the order went out that every Jedi was to die, it was sudden and without explanation. The clones had no way of refusing, but the same cannot be said of regular humans. Unfortunately, the only clones on Kohmbra were now far away from their Jedi target and suddenly had to find him at all costs. Now imagine it's your task to guard someone and you see his own soldiers turn on him. How in the stars does this story end with a struggle between Kane and a Jedi? Answer: it doesn't. And the original file on his death proves it. In the original datafile, Kane Faro's cause of death is a blaster shot to the back. If he was supposedly fighting in close quarters with a Jedi wielding a lightsaber, why would the Jedi use a blaster to end him? There would be no point. So the file was doctored to say Kane died from a lightsaber strike to the chest. He was cremated soon after death. No one would ever know the difference.

"He didn't die trying to capture a fugitive. He died trying to help an innocent party escape collective blame for an incident that, really, none of us will ever know anything about. Maybe that's enough to get Kane declared a Jedi sympathizer and traitor in these times, but I admire him for it. Now that Kohmbra is aware of his existence, they deserve to know the truth about him as well. If learning the truth gets some citizens to question other things the Empire's told them in their lives, more power to them."

Hana could barely speak through her bawling. "That… that isn't true. The Jedi were enemies of the Republic. It's their fault the Clone Wars started! They interrupted some Outer Rim execution and pushed the Republic into fighting their former friend worlds. My father would never give his life for one!"

"There's one thing I don't understand about all this."

"_One_ thing, Brendyn?" Greg couldn't believe his ears. Had all his children gone mad?

"Well, one among many. Why change Kane Faro's cause of death way back when in the first place? Yeah, the truth isn't fun, but what reason would the new Empire have to lie about it? He was just some soldier caught on the wrong side of his final battle."

"Not just any soldier, Brendyn. Kane Faro was a good soldier. People respected his opinions. He could have been a lot higher ranked in the PDF if he just wanted to be. Being enlisted didn't change that. If the new Empire came out and said he died defending some Jedi, Kohmbran citizens would question the purge even more than they did anyway. Saying he agreed with the coup story and that stopping Jedi takeover was the sword he chose to fall on gives the whole purge legitimacy, at least among Kane's peers. It's… also possible they thought the lie was an act of kindness for Kane's family. His daughter," William gestured to Karyn, "was recently admitted to and about to enroll in the newly renamed Imperial academy. Imagine she carried the name of a Jedi sympathizer with her to school. Would Karyn have still gone on to become a commodore today? Maybe, but I doubt it."

"That's quite enough." Karyn's free hand was shaking. She held it in a fist behind her back to hide the fact. "Allow me to see if I understand your recent actions. You assisted a friend of yours in stealing from the Empire with the hopes that you could foment discord on a peaceful planet. Part of this plan included humiliating the memory of the man soon to become your father-in-law, the very man you spent months on end honoring just to make his eventual fall from grace seem worse. You pretend you're proud of this act, but planned to carry it out completely anonymously so that you could still marry a casualty of your crusade. You want to be a rebel, but at the same time seek to live in a house with an Imperial officer's salary as its main source of income. You want to start riots on Kohmbra, but your very job relies on sustained peace to continue its routine operations. You disparage the Empire for supposedly lying to its populace to maintain its position, but we all just witnessed you lie to and belittle a member of the very household over which you wish to become master. Finally, when someone sought to reveal the truth about you, you attempted to murder them -that is, me- so that you could keep your place of privilege here. At this point, I don't know which assessment of you would be kinder: that of a liar or that of a hypocrite."

William was stunned. It took him a few tries to cobble together a response. When he finally did: "I wasn't_ trying_ to murder you! I honestly don't know what went wrong there... other than the obvious, I mean. Brendyn told me the poison would just make you sick for a few days. I figured if you didn't feel well, you wouldn't go to the archives. I didn't want to see you dead. I just wanted to run the clock out on your shore leave. Then I figured it would be another few years before I had to worry about you ever again."

"I told you _what_?" Brendyn's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "I was not involved in this conspiracy. Not at all. Do not pretend I was. I love you too, Will, but I am not interested in becoming cellmates."

"What do you mean? You told me this morning! The poison you were running tests with. You said everyone who suffered from it recovered, even the ones who didn't go to the hospital. But here's Grand Admiral Thrawn saying it's insanely deadly. Which is it, Brendyn?"

Brendyn took a second to process, then his mouth popped open. He shook his head, burying his face in his hands. "Oh no. Ohhhhhhh no. Really, Will?"

Karyn saw it best to enlighten William. "The poison your brother was experimenting with this morning was normaxicane. The poison Grand Admiral Thrawn ingested was fadacine. The poisons are chemically similar, but not identical."

"You stole the wrong one, Will," Brendyn added, his voice slightly muffled.

"What? No, that can't be right. I was sure I took normaxicane from the shelf this morning. That row of little vials in the middle of the shelf?"

"Contains both chemicals. You have to read the label."

William fell back, eyes the size of saucers. "Seriously? That's a lab accident waiting to happen!"

"Thank you!" Brendyn threw an arm out in his brother's direction. "Do you think Dr. Sobotko will agree with me to change the storing system after all this is over?"

Karyn saw this as a perfect opportunity to get another dig in. "Hold it. Am I supposed to believe the man who can't read a clearly formatted, very colorful poison label was able to not only break into, but_ read _a stolen, encrypted datafile describing my father's death? You confound me, William. Tell me: what reason do I have to believe anything you say on the matter?"

"But I did check the label! I've taken chemistry before. I know how to read them. I grabbed the normaxicane, I swear!" William searched wildly around the room. "Meg, you saw the label when you stole the vial. What did it say?"

Meg shook her head, tears threatening to start up again. "I don't know. I've never done chemistry before. All I knew about the vial was that it had poison in it."

"Well, there has to be some way to settle this." Greg paused to think. He turned to Thrawn. "Sir, you're certain you were poisoned with fadacine, but how? All your evidence from the investigation searched for poison using its chemical family. Normaxicane is in that family as well. Is it possible that you ingested normaxicane instead?"

"It is not, I am afraid. You are correct that the evidence collected within this household does not distinguish beyond the chemical family. The hospital medical records, however, are quite clear. Fadacine was most definitely discovered in my system."

Greg hung his head. "Well that settles it. I can't defend you anymore, William. What you've done here today was true radicalism. I don't care how much you loved Dr. Fischer. Is his pride worth more than your wife and mother-in-law's safety? Your sister-in-law's life?"

Lieutenant Weylen piled on. "You are a very stupid man, William Sklar. You almost had it all. A steady job you enjoyed, no worries about money, a hot wife ready to serve you every time you come home, a sweet mother-in-law with awesome cooking, your only drawback minimal interaction with a sister-in-law whose career you disagree with? What sort of dumbnut would risk losing that lifestyle? And for what? A sixteen year old conspiracy theory? I think you're the real idiot here."

Brendyn was quiet for the first time all day. "Um… Admiral, sir? Can I… see your medical records? Just for a minute?"

"Certainly." Thrawn directed Lieutenant Weylen to bring up the correct page, then hand Brendyn his datapad. "This is one copy of the report drafted on me when I was recovering in the local hospital."

Brendyn pulled out his own pair of glasses, then scrolled through. "Yup, that's fadacine. But also… woah. You see into the infrared, sir? I'm not a biologist by any means, but wow! That's really cool. And your internal temperature regulation. Do you _really_-"

"That is enough. Lieutenant, take the file back." Brendyn didn't protest when he lost the datapad, but he did continue to babble. He was comparing Thrawn extensively to Pantorans when Liza finally smacked him across the face.

"Your brother could be on this way to an execution and all you care about is alien biology? Brendyn Reginald Sklar, get a grip on yourself!"

Brendyn smarted from the slap. "...Dammit. I'm fresh out of jokes here. Sorry, Will. Gonna miss you, buddy. We had a good run together. But look at this from a learning perspective: the theoretical next time you wanna take a swing at the Empire, you need to make sure your wife is on board with it first."

William sighed, glancing at Hana for the thousandth time. Like every previous attempt, she refused to meet his eyes. "She never would have agreed to it. She worships Karyn too much. She thinks because her sister is nice to her and serves the Empire that she must be doing good things in the galaxy. And who knows? Maybe Karyn actually is a good person as an individual. But Commodore Faro? I_ really_ doubt it."

Hana spoke again for the first time in a while. "You can't split Karyn apart like that. I learned this years ago. Karyn and Commodore Faro are the same person. And if you love somebody, you don't get to pick and choose which parts of them you love. You either love them for their whole selves or you don't love them at all." She sniffed. "And I don't love this part of you, Will. This part of you who wants to humiliate my dad, kill my sister, and make us live poor on the run all the time? I can't stand that! You hate my whole family and think you can love me? They're a part of me too, you just wish they weren't. Were you trying to force me to end up all alone so all I had left was you? What was your plan for Mom then, huh?"

"I had no 'plan' for your mother. Hana, please. I really do love-"

"You had no 'plan' for me until earlier today. You had no 'plan' to ruin my father's name until at most a month ago. I wouldn't trust any promise you make about my mother." Karyn turned to Hayleen with the intent of securing her well-being. What she found instead surprised her.

How long had Hayleen been crying in her chair? No one had heard a sound from her corner, so it was impossible to tell. When she spoke up, Hayleen's voice was remarkably poised for the circumstances. "Were we ever unkind to you, William? Is there anything Hana or myself did to you that made you think we deserve to suffer?"

"No that's not- Hayleen, you were always kind to me. It's just that-"

"If you think my husband was such a good man, why would you put the people he loved most through hell? However you think his death happened, he dedicated his life to serving his family and country. Kane never let his dedication to one outweigh the other. You think he'd want us all shunned and bickering amongst ourselves over some vague concept you call 'truth'? You never even knew him. If you spent all that time with Kane's personal items -items I _gave_ you- and never noticed that about him, then you are the wrong person to hold his legacy in your hands. You don't deserve to take the title of master from him." She wiped her tears away with her sleeve, and just like that, they all seemed to stop. "What are you waiting for, Admiral? Arrest him already."

Thrawn nodded. Two stormtroopers stepped forward. One shoved William to the center of the room while the other put his wrists in binders. At the sounds of the cuffs clicking, Hana buried her face in Karyn's shoulder. She couldn't watch.

"It may be past due to mention as much, but the investigation also found Professor Sklar's fingerprints on both the wineglass and the poison vial. Once his arrest is processed, he will be charged with the following crimes against the Empire: attempted murder of a grand admiral in the Imperial Navy, conspiracy to commit murder against a commodore in the Imperial Navy, accomplice to breaking and entering on Imperial property, accomplice to larceny of Imperial effects, sedition against the Emperor, and treason to the Galactic Empire. If the professor's final sentence is not execution, it will likely be prison for life, potentially with the addition of labor."

"Then I guess this is goodbye." William struggled to keep his voice from shaking. He didn't want to show his fear in front of the Imperials. "I love you Mom, Dad. Brendyn, Meg."

"I'm sorry, Will. I tried to help you. I really did." Meg tried to approach William, but the stormtroopers prevented her from getting close.

William turned back to get one last look at his sister. "I know you did. I never wanted to get you involved in any of this. I love you, Meg."

"I love you too."

"...I love you, Hana."

Hana didn't look up. "No you don't! You hate me and think I'm stupid. Well, I hate you too!" She pulled her engagement ring off her finger and probably meant to throw it at William. Instead, it bounced off the armor of a nearby trooper and landed near Liza. "I hope I never see you again."

One could see William's heart breaking through his eyes alone. But as Hana fell apart in her sister's arms and his gaze shifted to Karyn, those pits of gemstone green hardened until all that shone through was hatred. And of course, it was that exact moment when Hana took the risk of seeing his face one last time. Her wails morphed into screams, all right into Karyn's ear.

In that instant, every new belief Hana had confronted about William cemented in her mind, wiping her previous conception completely away. Her heart was utterly broken, and Karyn was the only one who could heal her. Her strong, smart, heroic sister had protected her from falling into the clutch of a monster. Nothing anyone said afterwards would convince her otherwise. William had only himself to blame.

As William was led away, he took his mother's composure with him. Liza picked the ring off the floor and put it back on her fingers. Karyn could barely hear her over Hana. "You scarlet-eyed demon!"

"You have something you wish to say to me, Madame Sklar?"

"You had your evidence. You could have arrested my son at any time. Instead, you decided to waste time and let us scream at each other. Do you take pleasure in my family's misery?"

"That is not why I chose to explain myself in this manner. The evidence I had against your eldest was sufficient with regards to this morning's incident, but it did not explain his motivations in a satisfactory manner. It is not desirable in my eyes to leave issues unresolved. And with the professor's confession, I believe we have resolved two incidents today. Lieutenant, contact the relevant authorities about the break in the case regarding your planet's historical records. I am certain once you arrest the professor's friend that one of them will give you the location of the stolen items. Ensure nothing from the records is set to become public automatically and quietly secure everything back where it belongs. I see no reason to allow these thieves to achieve their objective."

"Yes, sir. Calling now." Lieutenant Weylen stepped into the dining room to talk to his sargeant friend.

"That charges list is awfully long. I get Will committed some crimes, but… no one died, here. Why does he have to?" Brendyn asked, still rather subdued. "If he wasn't trying to kill anybody, is murder the right thing to charge him with? I ask because I genuinely don't know."

"What would you suggest instead, Mr. Sklar?"

"...Attempted manslaughter, maybe? Conspiracy to cause bodily harm, for Karyn? I get this wouldn't change anything else on the charges list, but it might take execution off the table. Don't ask me, I'm not a lawyer. It's just… you're fine, sir, and so is Karyn. The most anyone here's been harmed is emotionally."

"And?"

"And seriously! What else were you going to do today, sir? Not solve a crime, that's for sure. I bet you were on your way to some boring meeting with military bigwigs. Those must be full of politics! I bet they're so annoying that what you got to do today is actually prefer-" Brendyn cut himself off to laugh like a maniac. "Oh stars. Imagine that! 'This meeting is so awful, I'm going to drink poison solely to get out of it. Wake me up when Admiral Glorywhore is done boasting.'" He could barely finish his sentence, he was laughing so much.

"Brendyn! That is not funny. Knock it off." Greg ordered. Unfortunately, he'd lost control of the situation some time ago.

Weirdly enough, it was that argument that got Thrawn to consider Brendyn's proposal. Well, maybe not so strange given Thrawn's preferences. "I understand your point, Mr, Sklar. It is not up to me what sentence the magistrate gives your brother for his crimes, but the possibility that he carried no murderous intent could perhaps be considered. Do you find that acceptable, Commodore?"

"Sir?" Karyn had missed pieces of the conversation. Mostly because Hana had moved beyond wordless screaming and was now chanting "I'm sorry" over and over into Karyn's chest.

"Do you find the fact that Professor Sklar only wished to sicken you a relevant detail to mention in his upcoming trial?"

Karyn shook her head. "I have no reason to believe him. Even if I did, intentions matter far less than consequences."

Liza screamed in frustration. "I knew you were heartless! How can a girl as sweet as Hana be related to someone as cold as you? Why does Hayleen make so many excuses for you? All you are is a ruthless, calculating, domineering, ungrateful little bitch."

"And even if every word of that was true, it still wouldn't justify what your son tried to do to me." Karyn was exhausted from dealing with these people. Liza had resented her since before they'd even met. It was obvious now that nothing Karyn said or did would change that. "I know it can be hard to lose a child, Mrs. Sklar, but you can't blame yourself. It was William's mentor who radicalized him, not his upbringing… though that doesn't explain Meg, now does it?"

Sensing a threat, Liza immediately grabbed her daughter's wrist. She pulled Meg closer to her, as if that would do anything to protect her. "What do you plan to do to my Meg? You've already taken one of my children from me. What use is another one to you?"

Thrawn decided he was the better of the two to handle this matter. "I have no intentions of charging Miss Sklar with anything. My recommendation to the lieutenant was to return her to your custody with a warning. I hope the events of today were enough to dissuade her from taking more meaningful rebel action." He turned to Meg, a twinkle in his eye. "I argue it's someone's actions that decide their allegiance, not their beliefs. Beyond that, I suggest you compose yourself, Madame Sklar. Consider yourself fortunate to exit this ordeal with two children remaining. Bring no more attention to yourself."

Liza was still fuming, but she understood the message just fine. Further antagonization of Imperial soldiers could put Meg's freedom on the line. Already, her daughter's situation was precarious.

Brendyn took an entirely different message from that speech. "Two children? So... I'm cool."

"Yes, Mr. Sklar. You are an innocent, if oblivious party to the whole affair. I imagine your only consequences will come from your institution of higher learning when they discover you allowed an unauthorized individual to enter a storeroom and remove sensitive materials. I believe that may constitute a punishable oversight in laboratory regulation."

"Kriff, it does. Dammit, Will. I mean, I know he's got a few bigger problems right now, but come on, man!" Brendyn sighed, removing his glasses to look at Karyn. He put his hands up as he took steps toward her. "You know, for someone who was slated for death in her own house, you don't seem that shaken up about it."

Karyn swallowed. Her answer was quiet enough that only Brendyn could make it out. "How do you know?"

He shrugged. "I guess I don't. Hey, Hana."

That got her to look up for a few seconds. "Hi, Brendyn."

"I'm sorry I made you feel dumb earlier. I didn't realize it meant so much to you."

She sniffed. "It didn't mean as much when you said it. I already knew that was how you saw me. That's how all of Wi-" she gasped, "how all his friends think of me. To them, I'm just… just some pretty girl he likes to sleep with and spend money on. But I…" here came the tears again, "I thought he really cared about me. I thought he was different. Oh!" Back to Karyn's chest with her.

"I'm sorry he tricked you, Hana. You deserve so much better than him." Karyn ran fingers through Hana's hair all the way down her back. Hana shifted under Karyn's touch, eager for more affection.

Brendyn didn't agree with Karyn, but he had the sense not to fight about it anymore. "I'm sorry all this happened to you, Karyn. You come home meaning to do something nice for your sister and your boss ends up nearly dying as a result. It just sucks for everybody."

Well, everybody except one person. Lieutenant Weylen was overjoyed that such a case was going down in the datawork as solved "under his leadership". Even if his role was minimal in reality, it loomed far larger on paper. "Troopers are on their way to arrest one Rick Carltyn. I think we're done here, Grand Admiral sir. Thanks again for your help. And for not… you know."

"Of course. Before your delegation departs, I wish to collect the name and serial of every stormtrooper who assisted in this case so that I may personally commend them."

"What will you say about me, sir?"

"Consider my silence most flattering, Lieutenant."

That deflated his ego, but only a bit. "That's fair." He twitched his hand without explanation. "Ugh, why do I still have this?"

Karyn watched as the piece of flimsi fell back to the ground. It was a part of the poison label. The one that had been stuck to Meg's shoe. "Just a second, Hana."

"Hm?"

Karyn walked over to pick up the piece of flimsi, ignoring Brendyn's queries as she did so. This piece still didn't include any part of the warning sections, just the tail end of the molecular formula: A string of hydrocarbons.

* * *

**A/N's: Sorry about the length. I refused to split this chapter. Reading through this, I think you can see why.**

**Behold: the second longest single chapter I have ever written for a fanfic. First place goes to a chapter in one of my Ace Attorney fics (also the culprit confrontation of a murder mystery, as you'd have it), and while I still got nothing on some people, I'm pretty pleased with myself for pumping this out relatively quickly. I wrote the latter half of it over the last three days. I also briefly considered uploading a spoof of this chapter as an April Fools joke, but knew y'all wouldn't appreciate it.**

**So there you have it: the (almost) end of the fic. Last chapter is mostly dedicated to emotional resolutions, plus a few loose ends. I originally ended this chapter with another scene, one that comes immediately after the chapter's current ending, but decided this was a good enough stopping point. I hope you all agree. I want to hear your thoughts about this chapter, so I'll save my more detailed rants for my review replies.**

**Again, thank you all sooooooooo much for being so supportive as I've gone about writing this fic. It's been months, maybe years, since fanfic writing was this fun for me. I will definitely write more Tharo stories (and maybe Chimaera crew/Thrawn series fics in general) after this one is finished, just not right away. Until next time!**


	9. The Departure

Master of the House

Chapter Nine: The Departure

Karyn flipped the label fragment over, searching for more information. But that's all there was. Hydrocarbons and blank space. No way that was correct.

Thrawn was certain. His medical records backed him up. What was going on, here?

"What's wrong, Karyn?" Hana asked, hugging herself now that Karyn wasn't. "What is that?"

Karyn shoved the piece of flimsi into her pocket. She'd deal with it later. "Trash. As for what's wrong…" she moved to embrace Hana from behind, kissing the side of her head as she did so, "the fact that _someone_ thought he could waltz into our house, feed me poison, treat you terribly, and still marry into the family seems pretty wrong to me. You're worth a million times more than he is, Hana. He belittled you so you'd think he's worth settling for. But what's important is that you saw through him. He failed because of you."

Hana turned around in Karyn's hold so she could return the hug. "But Karyn! He almost did all those things! I believed in him, and he nearly killed you." She gasped. "I told him you and I were going to the archives. I wanted you to drink the wine with me. I led you over to the glasses, and… and oh no. Karyn! This is all my fault!"

"Hana-"

Her grip around Karyn's waist tightened. She pushed her chest up against Karyn's for maximum closeness. "I didn't mean it, Karyn. Please believe me! I don't want you to die. You're the bravest, smartest, most amazing person I know. I've always wanted to be more like you. My life would be _over _if you weren't in it. Today just proves how much I need you." She looked up so Karyn could see her face. Hana's eyes glistened with tears, water mixing with her makeup as both streaked down her face. The tip of her nose was red, but the rest of her face burned only a blush pink. Even heartbroken, Hana had the face of an angel. Karyn felt a surge of affection just looking at her. "I love you, Karyn."

"And I love you. I know you didn't want any of this to happen." Karyn smiled, rubbing her hands up and down Hana's back. If she pushed hard enough, maybe she could quash all of Hana's sobs. "You're my good girl."

"Mmhm!" Hana nuzzled her way into the spot between Karyn's neck and shoulder. How she could breathe from there was anyone's guess. From this vantage point, Karyn could see Hayleen approaching them. She checked with Karyn to make sure her daughters were okay, then approached the couch.

Hayleen stopped a meter and a half away from the remains of the Sklar family. She cleared her throat, keeping her tone diplomatic as she addressed them. "Today did not proceed as planned. It's getting late. I'm sure all of you are exhausted. I think it would be best for everyone if you return home. I will pack up the items that belong to your family," she nodded to Liza in particular, "and find an appropriate way to return them in the near future. Perhaps a time next week?"

"Next week would likely be best." Greg agreed. He pulled his wife and daughter close to him, cocking his head at Brendyn as a way of summons. "I am shocked by what's happened here today. Trust me when I say I thought I'd raised better kids than this. One's beyond my saving," he glared at Liza to keep her from protesting, "but believe you me, I will make damn sure Meg straightens her act out. She will _not_ be wasting the second chance that Grand Admiral Thrawn has so mercifully given her. Thank you for… everything, Hayleen."

Hayleen nodded, grace shining through in her every feature. "Goodbye, Gregorie, Liza. Best of luck with your lab situation, Brendyn. Meg... make better choices, okay dear?"

Meg winced. Greg prompted her towards Thrawn. "What do you say to the grand admiral, Meg?"

"I am_ not _thanking him for arresting my brother." Her voice was barely audible, but some fight had seeped back into it. So much for learning her lesson.

Brendyn sighed. "Then thank him for not arresting you. Pretty sure he _does_ have legal justification to put both our wrists in binders, here. What matters more to you, Meg: freedom or pride? Because I am one hundred percent picking freedom. They don't let you play with chemicals in prison, or so I'm told." He bowed before Thrawn. "Thank you for sparing my life, sir."

"No expression of gratitude is necessary, Mr. Sklar. I did not render my judgement of you and your sister with an expectation of reward. You are left with your freedom because you have more to offer the galaxy outside a cell than you do inside one. You are oblivious to the ways of traitors, but adept in the applied sciences. Use your talents for the good of society, Mr. Sklar. You as well, Miss Sklar. Your intelligence ought not be wasted on something so futile as the rebel cause."

"Well, I still want her to say it. And I'm the head of the Sklar household, in case any of you have forgotten." Greg squeezed Meg's shoulder. "Well, Meg?"

She spoke through gritted teeth, turning her head to the side. "Thank you."

Before the group of four left, Hayleen had one last thing to say. "I plan to round up Hana's old gifts from your brother. Brendyn, do you have any use for them? Maybe your lab partner friend would appreciate something."

"What did Will mostly give Hana, again? Necklaces with their names and stuff?" Brendyn nodded, voice dripping with sarcasm. "Oh yeah. I bet those would be a real hit with Peter."

Greg frowned. "You could have just said no."

"But I want them! I'm serious. I think it would be _hilarious_ to… fine. Sorry Mrs. Faro. That was rude of me."

"At least you acknowledge it. I'll donate them to the poor, then." Hayleen put a sleeve to her mouth, then continued. "Goodbye. All of you. We'll discuss wedding cancellations tomorrow."

Hayleen, Hana, and Karyn stood as a unit while the Sklars made their exit. With them gone and the list of trooper information now in Thrawn's possession, it was time for Lieutenant Weylen and company to leave next. "I think we're done here. Mrs. Faro, you may clean your kitchen. This investigation has all the evidence it requires to ensure William Sklar pays for his crimes against the Empire."

"Thank you, Lieutena- Jasper." Hayleen changed her tone mid sentence, nodding mournfully. "You know,I never forgot about you. It seems like yesterday you were just an eighteen year old boy in need of a place to stay for the summer. Do you get along better with your uncle now that you're a bit older, sweetheart?"

His shoulders sagged. He looked from Hayleen to Thrawn to Karyn, uncomfortable admitting personal information in front of the present company. "Not really, no."

"I see. Maybe in other circumstances, I could still offer you a refuge here." She sighed. "But I know what you did to my Karyn. Now, I can't stop you from walking a path of pettiness and jealousy, but you're sabotaging yourself by always chasing what other people have. If you'd just focus on honing your talents and doing your job, maybe you could rely on something better than nepotism to bring you opportunities in life. You could escape your uncle's power, just like you always wanted."

He nearly choked on his next words. "You're naive if you think the Empire considers merit when it determines people's lot in life. It's politics, all of it."

Thrawn shook his head. "Incorrect, Lieutenant. Politics play a role in the Imperial military, certainly, but there is room for merit yet in their calculations. The ideal Imperial soldier seeking promotion in rank is one who can balance military ability with political talent. Since it is rare for one warrior to possess both abilities, one should always value their merits over political capital. Politicians can lie. Results cannot."

"I see, sir. That… has not been my experience with the Empire in the slightest. You're lucky if it's yours." Lieutenant Weylen directed his last words at Karyn, true regret seeping into his demeanor for the first time in what may well be years. "Goodbye, Mrs. Faro, Miss Faro. It was an eye opening experience to meet you, Grand Admiral. And Ka- Commodore. Who knows when we'll see each other again, huh? You still going to be a commodore the next time you're on Kohmbra?"

"The next time I am on Kohmbra, you will have no reason to be aware of the fact. Your job here is done, Lieutenant. You may depart." Karyn found she had no interest in reconciling with Lieutenant Weylen. He was only softening his tone because he knew he'd been outplayed. She was confident the second her back was turned he would look for a new way to stick a knife in it.

"And so I shall." Lieutenant Weylen put his hands up in surrender, then followed the stormtroopers out of the house. The day ended as it began: with three Faros and a Thrawn.

"You didn't have to be harsh, sweetie." Hayleen came over to Karyn, prying Hana off her sister so she could hug her youngest instead. "You know the lieutenant has it rough."

"And you know he accused me of poisoning the grand admiral first, right Mother? He thought I put fadacine in my own cup so I could stage a rescue of my commander's life."

"I'm aware. I'm also aware that thanks to you and the admiral," Hayleen nodded to Thrawn, "the real truth came out instead. Consequences not intentions, or isn't that right? You don't need to act ugly, Karyn. You can be a graceful victor."

Could she? Yes. Did she want to? No. Karyn and Jasper's relationship hadn't ended with her promotion to junior lieutenant, but it really should have. Technically, the two of them never had an official breakup. Instead, Jasper had let Karyn waste her time trying to maintain a relationship while he stewed in his own mediocrity halfway across the galaxy. Each time she called him, he picked up less and less until they simply lost contact. Next thing she knew, he'd transferred out of the navy entirely. Karyn had buried those years she spent in a torturous nebula, but seeing Lieutenant Weylen once more brought the memories back like nothing else could. Time to get the shovel out again.

"I believe letting the lieutenant keep his current rank is sufficiently gracious for the situation, Madame Faro. His rash handling of a delicate case nearly led to the true culprit walking free while his intended target took the fall. That is not the work of a competent officer." Thrawn interceded on Karyn's behalf.

Hayleen did not appreciate his contribution. She was about to respond when Hana's stomach growled, diverting her attention. "Oh dear. You hungry, darling?"

"I… I guess so. Is it okay if you make dinner this time, Mom?"

"Of course, darling. You don't worry about a thing. You've been through enough today. What sounds good?"

"I don't know."

"Karyn, Grand Admiral? Any thoughts? I have to clean the kitchen first, so dinner won't be ready right away. Keep that in mind."

"I am forbidden from eating for twenty-four hours since the time of my poisoning. Do not take my preferences into consideration when making your selection, Madame Faro."

"Sorry to hear that, sir. What about you, Karyn? I'll make you anything you like if you help me tidy up in the kitchen. First we have to get all those shards up. You can do the dishes while I cook after that." Hayleen's message was clear: we need to talk. Alone.

Karyn wasn't looking forward to it, but she nodded anyway. "I can help you, Mother."

"Good." Hayleen led Hana to the couch, gently forcing her to sit down on it. "You just wait here, darling. Karyn and I will be right in the other room if you need anything. As for you, sir, feel free to check the news for anything related to spaceflights. You're free to use the long range holocomm in the corner," she pointed, "if you need to make calls to the_ Chimaera_ or Coruscant or any such place."

"Thank you, Madame Faro." Thrawn sat down on the side of the couch opposite of Hana. He showed no interest in either of Hayleen's suggested activities.

Karyn followed her mother into the kitchen. Hayleen pulled a broom and dustpan out of the pantry, then handed both items to Karyn. For her part, Hayleen grabbed a few rags and began wiping down counters. As it was only polite to wait for her mother to initiate conversation, Karyn chose to focus on the task at hand.

Hayleen didn't have her thoughts ready right away. For a time, things were silent in the house (sans Hana's sobbing). When Hayleen did feel like speaking, she started with: "is it true there's a sixteen year old commander among the rebel fleet?"

Karyn nodded, not looking up. "Yes, Mother. The specific rebel I mentioned has been involved with insurgents since he was fourteen."

Hayleen shook her head. She disposed of shards in the trash with slightly more force than necessary. "Where are that kid's parents?"

"They were arrested for rebel activity of their own when he was young and later died in an attempted prison break. Rebel Commander Bridger wandered the streets of Lothal's capital city as a petty thief until he was recruited by a rebel cell. The same rebel cell that's been causing so much trouble on Lothal since, in fact."

"Does the Outer Rim not have foster care? Adoption? Homeless youth services of any sort?" Hayleen worked herself up into an outrage over Bridger's case. "You mean to tell me this boy's fall into rebel hands was completely avoidable? That if the Empire had done just a little more for him, he wouldn't have been radicalized by terrorists? What a waste."

Karyn frowned. Was her mother seriously sympathizing with a rebel? Minutes after showering pity on Lieutenant Weylen? This woman would shed tears over anybody! "The Empire's grip on Outer Rim planets isn't as strong yet, Mother. Once planets like Lothal are better integrated into the Imperial order, social services will be far simpler to provide. Until then, security comes first. Even once that does happen, you can't expect the Empire to rescue every kid who draws the short straw in life. They do what they can."

"I know they can't reach everyone, sweetie. But terrorists aren't born. They're made. Rebel cells can't recruit homeless youth if the youth aren't homeless." Hayleen sighed. "At least this Bridger fellow had some reason to be angry with the Empire."

So that's where this was leading. Karyn should have guessed. "There's nothing you could have done to stop William from trying what he did today, Mother. You can't blame yourself."

"Then how did I never see it? I knew William wasn't enthusiastic about the Empire, but I just thought he wasn't interested in current events. He never studied an era of history unless it was a hundred years old or more. He never expressed any critical opinions to me. I don't think he said anything suggestive to Hana, either." Hayleen scrubbed furiously at a crusted-over food stain on the counter. "I believe you and your admiral, sweetie, but… why? Why did William want to hurt us?"

"Exactly the reasons he specified. He wanted to serve his distorted ideal of 'justice' with no care for who he hurt along the way. He knew his actions would hurt you and Hana. He chose to go through with them anyway." Karyn came dangerously close to snapping. She forced herself to soften her tone before continuing. "I can't believe how he would treat this household. His whole family had no respect for you, Mother."

"For _me_, sweetheart?" Hayleen raised an eyebrow. She caught onto Karyn's arm as Karyn tried to walk past her. "You saw the Sklar family at their worst today, Karyn. They're capable of so much better than you know. Don't blacken your heart hating them, sweetie."

Karyn switched hands on the dustpan so she could still throw shards away in the trash. "You see the best in people, Mother. You must realize not every person is a good one."

"I do. That doesn't mean I can't appreciate the way they took Hana in as their own while I was sick. They became her family in those months, sweetie. It's thanks to their support that she was able to finish school. Is it any wonder Hana wanted to make that sense of family permanent after I recovered? Hana's choice to marry William was sensible at the time. It isn't sensible now, but you can't dismiss _all_ her experiences as lies."

That was another thing Karyn was upset about. "Why didn't you tell me how bad things were, Mother? I would have come home sooner if I knew how close you were to-"

"How close I was to what? Dying?" Hayleen smiled. She pat Karyn on the arm, then released her entirely. "You did what you could, sweetheart. Your physical presence here wouldn't have changed anything. I can't be there for you every time you stare down death in a space battle, now can I?"

"But-"

"Karyn. Every moment I have with you at home is a gift, but there are times when the galaxy needs you more than I do. Liza doesn't understand what it means to have family members who serve, but before you became an officer, I saw my father, my uncle, my brother, and my husband all march off into different battles. They didn't always come back when I wanted them to. Some didn't come back at all. And I love them all the same. I love you every bit as much now as I would have if you kept constant vigil over my sickbed. The difference would be that the Empire would've been missing one of its brightest soldiers at a time when they needed her more than ever." Her smile grew wider. "Your admiral needs you more than you know, Karyn. More than I think he knows, too."

Karyn stopped in her tracks. Her first inclination was to profoundly disagree. Thrawn may appreciate her skills, but he would be a successful grand admiral whether she was around or not. Thrawn could make any situation work to his advantage. His selection of subordinates was no different in that regard.

Perhaps Hayleen wasn't thinking about battle fitness at all, though. But if not for his needs on the battlefield, what else could Thrawn require of Karyn? She knew how _she_ saw him, but never did she imagine the feeling was mutual.

If that's what Hayleen was getting at, though, then one question still needed asking. "Is that why you asked him to stay with us, Mother?"

"In part," she admitted. "Your admiral is quite the lonely man, isn't he? Being the only member of his species in an entire Empire isolates him more than I could ever imagine. A man of his brilliance must get accustomed to being misunderstood. I don't…" she gestured about, looking for the correct word, "understand him, but it seems like you do. He needs to appreciate the rarity of that and treat you accordingly."

Karyn wasn't the only human in the Empire who'd ever understood Thrawn. Between her and Commander Vanto, his familiarity with Thrawn far exceeded her own. Vanto had known Thrawn since his academy days. For better or worse, his entire career had hinged on how well he could communicate Thrawn's intentions to the rest of the galaxy. However Vanto felt about that expectation, he'd always known how to deliver on it.

But Vanto wasn't around anymore, was he? Whatever had happened to him, Thrawn lost a dear friend soon after his promotion to grand admiral, leaving him… well, yeah. Alone.

Hayleen continued. "I saw the way he looked at you in the spaceport, sweetie. Stranded on a strange planet like he was, you the only thing familiar to him. He wanted to hold onto you but felt like he couldn't. So I made things easier for him. You pretended to be upset, but I can tell you weren't. You would have put up an actual fight if you were."

"I… didn't want to be impolite." Karyn was done sweeping. With no more shards in sight, she went and found the mop, avoiding her mother's gaze as she did so.

Hayleen laughed. "Sweetheart. I'm your mother, not the Empire. I know how you talk about him in messages home. I've seen you interact with him today. I know how you get when you're fond of a man. You're incredibly ambitious in every other way, why should who you love be any different?" Her face fell. "I just hope you've set the _right_ standards high for yourself, is all."

Karyn froze. She listened briefly for sound in the living room. The sound of voices… oh. Thrawn must have tuned into the holonews broadcast. "What do you mean by that, Mother?"

"I… wasn't always so keen on the idea of you and your admiral. My precious baby lusting after an alien? Now, don't think I'm some sort of xenophobe, but sweetie… he's never going to marry you. He legally can't. And your babies, my _grandkids_? They'd be mongrels, all of them! They couldn't even be citizens on Kohmbra. And what do you know about this man's people? What if in their culture men keep dozens of wives and treat them like slaves?" Karyn was about to object, but Hayleen shook herself out of it first. "I was going insane imagining the possibilities. It wasn't until Hana talked some sense into me that I began to come around."

"Why, what did Hana say?"

"She reminded me that you were never interested in marriage and children anyway, and that if you don't care about such things, what did it matter if your admiral can't provide them? And sure, maybe I do wish you kept time in your schedule for a normal relationship, but you work too much to meet people any other way. As long as you two are careful, I fully believe you and your admiral can keep any secret you put your mind to." Hayleen stopped what she was doing to cup Karyn's cheek. "I know you want to rise to the top in the navy, sweetie, but don't forget about your own happiness along the way. But while you're seeking happiness, make sure you stay safe as well. I never heard what happened to the last human that admiral was friends with, but it can't be anything good. I know not every rumor about the admiral is true, so I don't know if I believe he's to blame for that young man's disappearance, but if you're going to die in Imperial service, I'd like to know how. And for sure. I pity the parents who don't."

Karyn returned the gesture on Hayleen's own cheek, then bent down to kiss the other. Until now, Karyn hadn't realized how badly she needed to hear all that. "I know, Mom. Thank you for understanding."

"Of course, sweetheart. You know I'll love you no matter what. Here, why don't I finish the mopping? You can start on the dishes." Hayleen took the mop from Karyn, deliberately sending her to a spot where the kitchen shared a wall with the living room. "Your father would be proud of the woman you've become, Karyn. Don't let one man's interpretation of his final moments make you think anything different."

Karyn plugged the drain. She had to speak a bit louder to be heard over the sink water. "Can we move Dad's pictures back to your room now that Hana isn't taking it?"

"Absolutely not. I've kept all that private long enough. Nothing WIlliam can say or do will ever make me ashamed of my husband. You shouldn't be ashamed of him either."

It wasn't shame that made Karyn wish those pictures were hidden away. Not shame in her father, at least. No, it was a shame in herself. For being childish. For expecting that every time she came home, against all laws of reality, Kane Faro would be there to greet her with more than just his portrait.

It was never going to happen. She'd known that from the day she arrived at the Imperial academy. But being away from home made it possible for Karyn to believe her childhood wasn't over even as the Empire taught her how to grow up. If she didn't come home, everything could stay exactly the way she remembered it, father and all. Hayleen and Hana had made their peace over the years with residing in a home where no master lived. Karyn never had.

"Have you decided what you want for dinner, sweetheart?"

Karyn shook her head. Not that Hayleen could see from her place behind her. "Make whatever you want, Mother. I'm not hungry."

There were too many thoughts in Karyn's head and not enough to do with any of them. Dishes kept her hands busy, but not her mind. Faces flitted in and out of the corner of her eye, their words and deeds chasing her into insanity. Jasper, William, Bridger… Thrawn. But most of all, her father.

Karyn remembered the night of his death all too well. Kane's assignment to a Jedi left him working late that night. Hayleen fretted with him over comm for missing dinner, but promised to save him a portion regardless. Hours passed. Hana was too young to stay up, but Karyn had convinced her mother she should be allowed to wait for him. That night, Karyn had had something special to show her father: her acceptance into the Republic (soon to become Imperial) Naval Academy off in the neighboring system. Kane had supported his daughter endlessly in her pursuit of a military career. It wasn't the academy on Coruscant, but it was well regarded nonetheless. He was the one who'd steered her away from the PDF and into the navy to begin with, telling her that Kohmbra wasn't ready for a woman as special as her and that the Republic was more understanding of the fact that ability had no regard for gender. Besides, wasn't it always her dream to travel among the stars?

Midnight came and went. She and Hayleen had nearly passed out on the couch when a knock came at the door. Convinced it was her father, Karyn had raced to the door and threw herself into the arms of… her father's commanding officer. His friend. Cap in his hands and tears in his eyes, he returned Karyn's hug as he waited for Hayleen to approach. Once he had them both at the door, he broke down sobbing as he described how news had come in from Coruscant labeling all the Jedi traitors. The few clone soldiers on Kohmbra rallied, but Kane and his Jedi companion were nowhere to be found for hours on end. It wasn't until less than an hour ago two clones commed in to announce the Jedi's death. They claimed his human guide was dead on arrival, sliced apart by a laser sword. The sheer grief in the captain's eyes as he recounted the tale… how could he have been anything but sincere?

He offered to let Hayleen see Kane's body later, but she was horrified by the prospect. She ordered her husband cremated right away and put his ashes in an urn for the funeral service. Hayleen had two grieving children in her care, one who was only seven years old at the time. What use was it to traumatize them with the sight of their father's corpse? Nothing about her decision had seemed odd at the time.

If that night had been bad, the next morning was worse. Karyn had barely been able to sleep, wanting to believe so badly that none of it was real. It was a mistake. They'd found someone else's body, not her father's. It wasn't until the next morning when Hayleen broke the news to Hana that it all began to process. Kane Faro had served through the entirety of the Clone Wars only to die on its final battlefield. To die before he ever knew of how great his daughter would become.

Karyn hung her head, fighting off the battalion of tears threatening to ram their way free. Her eyes burned, but the shields held. She would not shed tears tonight. She forced herself to get out of her own head, focusing instead on the soapy ceramic in her hands. Her ears turned outward once more to the place where Hana _had_ succumbed to her tears. Much to Thrawn's mounting irritation.

"Have you not dehydrated yourself yet, Miss Faro?"

"What? ...Oh." Hana sniffed, trying and failing to stop what she was doing. "I'm bothering you, aren't I? I know I am, but I- uh huuuh!" She wailed louder. "It won't stop. It hurts, and it won't stop. And now I'm annoying. First stupid, and now annoying. What's next, ugly?"

The softest of sighs. "You are none of those things, Miss Faro. Your reactions are natural given the circumstances. I simply did not know humans could cry for such an extended duration."

"Why… why aren't you more sad? You almost died today."

"It is a matter of perspective, Miss Faro. I will not claim assassination attempts are a routine affair in my line of work, but this is not the only one I have survived. It is a part of my occupation to face mortal danger, just as it is your sister's. By contrast, I cannot imagine that facing monumental personal betrayal from men you love is a familiar experience to you. This could be the worst ordeal you ever face in your life."

Whimper. "But Karyn isn't supposed to be in danger when she comes home. She's supposed to be happy here. Instead, she's scared and sad and angry and it's all my fault for inviting her!"

"You bear no blame for today's events, Miss Faro. Any role you may have had in the affair is purely incidental. Consider the circumstances had you not invited your sister to your wedding. Your marriage proceeds as expected and your ex-fiance goes through with his plan to release incendiary comments about your father to the public. Do you think your sister would have stayed away when she heard the news? Would the professor not have attempted a similar scheme in that scenario as well?"

Hana hadn't considered that. She had to think about it for a moment. "I don't know what he would have done. I feel like I never knew him at all." She sniffled. "We were supposed to add to our family together, not shrink it."

"So I heard."

"Karyn doesn't want any kids, so it's my job as a part of this family to give Mom the grandkids she's always dreamed of. But they have to have a good father before they can be born, and I can't even do that right. I had one job, and I blew it. I'm a disgrace to the house!"

"You are young still, Miss Faro. You have time to find a more suitable candidate with which to conceive children." Thrawn hesitated before continuing. "You are not a mark of shame in your family's line. Trust me when I say as much."

Even Hana seemed to sense the weight of those words. "What about you, Admiral? What are things like in your family?"

He didn't answer right away. "In some ways, it is rather akin to yours. As you have an older sister, so too did I have an older brother."

Hana gasped. From the way Thrawn spoke, it sounded as if "your brother died?! How?"

A slight chuckle. "No, Miss Faro. He is not the one who died. In the eyes of my closest blood kin, it is I who lives no longer. Such is the nature of exile… perhaps it is for the best. My brother is preferable to me in many ways."

"How can that be true? You're a genius! Everyone knows it."

"Not everyone, Miss Faro. My job would be far easier were that the case. As for what marks me inferior, it is quite simple: I was expelled from the Chiss Ascendancy and banished from my society. My brother was... not."

"Awwwwwwwwwww," Hana cooed. "That's so sad. I'm-"

"Do not touch me, Miss Faro." Thrawn cleared his throat. "The point that you ought not feel guilty stands. Only one individual entered this house with an intent to do harm, and that individual is not yourself. I am aware of that fact, as is your sister."

Had Hana tried to embrace Thrawn? Karyn shook her head, fighting a smile off her face. That was such a Hana thing to do. As was what she said next. "Oh… okay." Sniff. "You know, I don't know why everyone thinks you're so mean. I'm sure you _can _be scary when you want to be, but mostly you're just awkward."

"...Thank you for that assessment, Miss Faro. Now share it with no one else. I do have a reputation to uphold." Was that a hint of teasing in Thrawn's tone?

"That's fine. I get it. You don't like it when people know things about you." Pause. "Thanks for listening to me."

"You can thank me by wailing no longer."

"No, I want to do something nice back. But… hm. What do I have that you would want? Oh!" Hana's voice perked up, gaining some semblance of her earlier, bubblier self. "I have a secret for you. Well, it's not_ that _much of a secret to anyone with eyes, but I can tell social things are hard for you. Come here."

"Hm? That is not nece- Miss Faro, please don't…_ touch_ me..." Thrawn trailed off. Karyn could only guess that Hana was whispering her piece in his ear. She had the most unfortunate sense that she knew what Hana was telling him. That suspicion was only confirmed by Thrawn's next comment. "I see. How long would you say this has been the case?"

"Oh, at _least _months. Maybe even a year!" _Thank you, Hana. _Karyn was sorely tempted to cut them off before Hana could press the issue further, but how could she do that without raising suspicion? No, she had to suffer this in silence. Karyn set a frying pan off to the side, watching as Hayleen came over to claim it. Hayleen hid her face so Karyn couldn't see her laugh.

"I see. And you consider this revelation to be an act of kindness for what reason?"

"What do you mean? You're a grand admiral. You make tons of money. You wouldn't stay in this house if you didn't want to. And why would you want to stay here if you didn't feel the same way? I know you haven't had much fun on Kohmbra so far, but that newscast said the spaceport won't open again until next morning. You still have one more night to enjoy yourself. Mom and I just want Karyn to be happy. We won't tell on you."

"..."

"Well?"

"...You are perceptive, Miss Faro. One would be ill-fated to mistake your frivolous demeanor for a lack of intelligence. Someone already has been, in fact."

"You're avoiding the question!" _Thump. _Was… was that a pillow? Had Hana honestly just thrown a _pillow _at Grand Admiral Thrawn? "What? I didn't touch you."

"...You seem rather invested in this subject, Miss Faro. I fail to see how any of these matters concern you."

"Well, _someone_ should use this time to enjoy themselves! If it isn't going to be me, I'd at least want it to be Karyn. We've all had a really long, really bad day, but it doesn't have to end badly for _everyone_ in this house. I'd rather some of us were happy than none of us."

"Hm. Your sentiments are kind, but irrational."

"Yeah." Hana had no problem admitting it. "So what? No one's 'rational' all the time. Anyone who thinks they are is just repressing stuff. And that's not good for anybody."

At last her mountain of dishes was vanquished. Karyn unplugged the drain, watching as the sudsy water swirled down to the bottom of the sink. The sound prevented her from hearing what Thrawn said next. And even if she wanted to listen beyond that, Hayleen announced that dinner was ready immediately after. She told Thrawn he was welcome at the dinner table, but he declined to join them. After moving the chairs he'd used in interrogation back into the dining room, he left the Faros to their own devices.

Dinner itself was a simple affair. Unlike this morning, Hayleen had opted to cook something simple and convenient. Karyn sat in the same place she had before, but this time Hayleen sat to her right and Hana to her left. All had returned to normal. That didn't stop Hana from casting wistful glances at the master's chair, however.

None of them spoke much, and when they were finished, Hana wandered into the kitchen first. She grabbed her mostly full-bottle of wine, wavered over whether to grab a wineglass, then, deciding she didn't need any sort of cup, proceeded to drink straight from the bottle. She'd gulped down a large quantity before Hayleen was able to intervene.

"Getting drunk isn't going to help it, darling. I know it hurts, and you don't have to talk any more tonight if you don't want to, but there is one more thing I want to accomplish before you go to bed. Give me one minute." Hayleen snatched the bottle out of Hana's hands and put it away. She briefly left the room only to return with a large cloth sack. "We're going to go through your bedroom. Anything you see that makes you think of _him _goes in the sack. We'll keep it out of sight for a few days, and once you feel a little better, we can decide what you keep and what you give away. Is that alright?"

Hana nodded, glancing down as she did so. "This dress goes in the sack." She reached a hand down to lift the hem, about to pull it off over her head when-

"You can do that in your room. Come along, now." Hayleen took Hana by the hand and led her out of the kitchen. She addressed Karyn before she left. "Finish the dishes in here, sweetie. Once you're done with that, I don't care what you get up to. Just… be courteous of the people who share walls with you, okay?"

Karyn did not miss the implications of that comment. Both Hayleen and Hana had some pretty high expectations for tonight. Karyn wasn't sure she shared them, but neither woman wanted to hear it. "Okay, Mother."

Dishes didn't take as long the second time around. Once Karyn was finished and everything was put away, she went and found Thrawn in the foyer again, of all places.

Why did he like her father's portraits so much? It wasn't art in the traditional sense of the word. If he was analyzing it like it was, Karyn doubted he would learn a lot. It was be too easy to hope Thrawn could settle the issue just by looking at a few of Kane's personal items. Karyn knew the truth was further away than that.

But what if that wasn't what he was thinking about? Maybe he was comparing his own family to Karyn's, as he had when he spoke with Hana. If that was the case, then Karyn had no right to reprimand him. So she spoke only loud enough to catch his attention when she said, "Grand Admiral, sir."

"Commodore." He nodded to her, stepping away from the picture of Kane embracing his daughters. "I depart tomorrow morning. I hope you are able to enjoy the remainder your shore leave. Previous attempt on your life notwithstanding."

"Thank you, sir." That reminded her. Karyn wasn't sure how she wanted to ask her next question, but she knew she had to do it. "There's... one more thing about today I need to settle before I can relax."

"And what is that, Commodore?"

Karyn pulled the label fragment out of her pants pocket. She presented the object to Thrawn. "This fragment is from the label for normaxicane, not fadacine. Why is that?"

Thrawn quirked his eyebrows. "Is it now?"

"Yes. This is the end section of normaxicane's chemical formula. The end section is where normaxicane diverges from fadacine, so I know for certain this is the one." Karyn paused. "There wasn't a second source of poison in this house that we missed, was there?"

"There most certainly was not. How do you know the vial was not simply mislabeled, Commodore?"

Thrawn's explanation didn't seem half bad at first, but it didn't hold up to scrutiny. Karyn shook her head. "Brendyn Sklar's prints were on the vial, sir. You dismissed them entirely when the lieutenant found them and said nothing about their existence during the arrest. But Brendyn Sklar hasn't touched a vial of fadacine in days. That responsibility belongs to others on his research team. The chance of finding clear prints of his on a fadacine vial are slim to none."

"Is that so?" None of this surprised Thrawn in the slightest. "What does it all mean, then? Do you know, Commodore?"

He wanted her to say it. But why? Karyn listened for the position of her mother and sister before speaking. They were both busy in Hana's room. Thank stars. "Brendyn Sklar handled samples of normaxicane this morning. You were poisoned with normaxicane, sir."

As soon as the words left her lips, she regretted it. Was it a mistake to reveal what she knew? What if Thrawn took this as a confrontation? What if he reacted poorly?

"Yes, Commodore. I was." Thrawn's expression was no longer readable, only making Karyn's anxiety worse. "You were never in any mortal danger today."

"But… why, sir? Why lie about what you were poisoned with? Why alter your medical records to say you ingested fadacine?"

"My digestive system is not identical to that of a human's, Commodore. While the poison informally known as normaxicance would only have sickened you gradually over a course of days, you witnessed firsthand the effect it has on me. I did not exaggerate when I described to your mother how near I was to death. Though it wounds my ego to say so, the young professor came quite close bringing about to my ultimate defeat. That he did so on complete accident inflicts only further damage to my pride.

"Now, you are aware that I have my own set of rivals in the Empire. Tell me: how would such rivals take the news if they were to discover there existed a substance that, when released on my ship, would kill myself and only me?"

"They… would lose any need for precision in an assassination attempt, sir." Karyn answered, a tightness developing in her chest. She still danced on the edge of her nerves, but now for an entirely different reason. "They could infect the entire crew of the _Chimaera_ if they so desired knowing all humans on board would survive."

"I thought as much myself. The rapid medical response I received meant I was awake and alert far earlier than anyone knew. I used the time to hack into my medical droid, change the name of the poison detected in my system, and overhear a fascinating conversation that took place between the lieutenant and his ally who waited for me in the hospital. From there, I knew I had to take on a personal role in overseeing the investigation lest evidence of the truth come to light. I was fortunate the lieutenant gave me such an ample opportunity, but even more fortunate that Miss Sklar did most of mywork for me." Smirk. "Odd to think being poisoned could be the event that turns my luck for the better."

Karyn just realized. "So that's the reason you let Meg Sklar go. If you charged her with evidence tampering, the vial would be examined in more detail. By allowing her to go free, no one has any need to run follow up tests."

"It is another reason, yes. My stated reasons before are also genuine." Thrawn fixed his gaze on Karyn as he said his next piece. "Truth be told, I pity the young professor. His scheme to sicken you was ill conceived, but he had no reason to expect it would spiral out of control in this manner. And his sister? Her very attempt to preserve his freedom is what damned him worst of all. Thanks to her, no proof exists that the professor lacked murderous intent. No proof except for a torn piece of flimsi that you now hold in the palm of your hand." Thrawn held his own hand out, fingertips nearly touching hers. "Give it to me, Commodore."

Karyn's breath caught in her throat. She knew withholding such evidence would doom William to a sentence harsher than he (perhaps) deserved, but at the same time, could she ever bring herself to risk Thrawn's life? What was she upholding by refusing Thrawn here? Some easily abused concept of "fairness"? Such ideals meant little when precious lives lay on the line.

She flipped her hand over into his, relaxing into his grasp. His touch was cool, but sent twinges of warmth through her entire body.

Thrawn made no move to release her. He looked only into her widening eyes, red gaze glowing ever more intensely. "Thank you, Commodore."

Of course. Karyn briefly considered pulling away in that moment, but found that she lacked the desire to move. And while she was getting answers from Thrawn tonight… "What does it mean when your eyes slowly brighten like that?"

He blinked. "When I do what? ...Ah. You are familiar with the way human pupils dilate in the presence of that for which they are fond?" Karyn nodded. "What you see here is not an identical physiological response, but the act bears much resemblance. It is neither conscious nor voluntary. My apologies if the sight disturbs you, Commodore."

Karyn had to process that. So every time she saw Thrawn do that with his eyes, he was… pleased with her? And all this time, she'd thought it was an intimidation tactic! "It doesn't bother me anymore, sir. Not now that I know what it means."

"You could have asked me at any time, Commodore. I would have told you as much."

"Would you have?" Karyn risked stepping closer to him. "Are you sure?"

"...Well. Perhaps not at any time. Not in front of others, certainly. But for you… it is acceptable for you to be aware of some things, Commodore. You have shown me you can be trusted." Thrawn hesitated, then lay his other hand on Karyn's side. The two looked like they were about to waltz. "And so I trust you with this: nothing I have done to Commander Vanto did I do without his future in mind. He faced many struggles on account of knowing me, but none of them stemmed from my intention to cause him pain. Such intention never existed in me."

Karyn blinked. Vanto? Why would he mention Vanto now? He… he'd heard Karyn and Hayleen talk about him in the kitchen earlier, hadn't he? Just as she had heard him and Hana in the living room. Turnabout's fair play, she supposed. "I believe you. But you must know that you… you cast very long shadows, sir."

"I have realized that, yes. Know that I am never seeking to obscure your talents with my own. If I do regardless, tell me. It is my wish as well that you gain the recognition you deserve." Emboldened, Thrawn used his position to pull Karyn in close. His grip was firm, but not restricting. Karyn laid her head on his chest, loving the taut feeling of muscle she found. "You cut a striking figure in green, but consider the impression you would cast in complete white."

Karyn smiled, careful not to chuckle at Thrawn's accidental double meaning. She knew what he intended to say. "I've considered it many times, sir. Then we could attend High Command meetings on Coruscant together."

"Perhaps they would become bearable, then."

At this point, Karyn felt the rumble of Thrawn's voice more than she heard it. She took pleasure in the way vibrations traveled straight from his chest into her ear, the way there was no space between them. Her arm snaked around Thrawn's waist, earning her a slight hum for her troubles. "And even though we won't be on the same ship anymore, we'll be closer… sir."

"No need for that now. How much closer would you like to be to me… Karyn?"

Karyn shifted so she could look Thrawn in the eyes. Karyn wasn't aware of the fact, but her pleading eyes could give Hana a run for her money. She bit her lip, then responded. "Much closer."

Why was she saying all this now? It was too early to make these confessions! Yes, Karyn had been promised another command post with her promotion, but it hadn't come yet. As of now, this sort of contact was forbidden. Illicit, even.

Thrawn sensed what she was thinking. He took a small step back, loosening his grip around Karyn. As he pulled away, he took the label fragment with him. "You and I are both aware of the risks that come with such a declaration. I… acknowledge recent events have been turbulent for you, more so than they have been for me. You grapple with many emotional quandaries right now, some of with which I have no connection. Do not feel like you have to agree to an… extended arrangement right away. I depart in the morning. When you are aboard the _Chimaera_ once more, find me at a time we are alone. Give me your answer then. I promise that… whatever your response, it will not impact the way I see you in purely professional terms. Your career is in no jeopardy, Karyn."

She'd never seen Thrawn this uncertain before. Here, his eloquent brusqueness failed him, reducing his speech to slow pauses and hasty reassurances. His eyes shot past her, behind her, below her, looking anywhere but into her eyes. The transformation was shocking. Maybe he really did want Karyn.

Seeing his uncertainty is what brought everything together in Karyn's mind. She didn't need to weigh his proposal further. On some level, she'd been considering it for months. Karyn made sure to meet his eyes and steady them before she spoke. "What if I have my answer now?"

Thrawn's breath hitched. His uncertainty flickered from cautious doubt into… outright fear? "You do?"

Rather than answer him in words, Karyn tilted her head up and lifted herself by her toes to reach Thrawn's lips. Her kiss was soft at first, but quickly morphed into hunger. It'd been too long since Karyn was intimate with a man. She didn't have the patience for sweetness.

And neither did Thrawn. He reestablished his grip on her, nearly picking her up off her feet when he pulled her in close. An honest-to-stars _growl_ escaped his lips as they parted, allowing Karyn better access. The two struggled for dominance for a bit, battle ending only when Thrawn pulled away to ask, "for confirmation: that is a yes?"

Karyn's forehead landed on his shoulder as she laughed. She made sure she was donebefore looking Thrawn in the face again. "Yes, Thrawn. It is."

Sure, Thrawn had to leave in the morning. Until then, however, Karyn would give him something to remember for when he trapped on Coruscant.

* * *

**A/N's: There she is. Master of the House. Ain't she a beauty?**

**But seriously, y'all. I had NO IDEA this fic would be novel length when I started it. My predictions when I wrote the first couple chapters was for a fic half this size. But what can I say? I feel in love. With the plot, the characters, my OCs... all of it. This fic is all I have thought about re: fanfic for the past threeish months. Oh, and I did go back and check. Master Chapter 8 actually surpasses my previous record for longest single chapter. 13.3K versus 13.1K.**

**Also, sorry to anyone who is disappointed about the ending not going further. I've never been talented at writing smut, and I didn't feel like changing the rating of this fic. Also, back to my point above, Master does not need to be longer than this. This length is sufficient.**

**Now if you don't mind, I have accounting homework to finish before midnight. I may update my author notes after that. Ciao until then!**


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